Last week was a bad week. Bad. Lots of personal stuff going on, huge amounts of stress. We had one day where we were super busy and driving all over, so we ended up eating out for breakfast, lunch and dinner. But, that's all in the past. The scale moved, and even if it's not as much as I wanted (because the prior week was up due to sodium), it's still a win. If I only lost half a pound, it's half a pound less to lug around.
I've been using my Body Media religiously and am in love with it! Seeing how long I sleep at night and how often I wake up, all the steps (or lack thereof) I take in a day, and how much I burn is super helpful. I'm seeing that the Fat2Fit calculators are within just a couple hundred or less of what this says I burn, depending on how much I get up and walk around throughout the day (not a lot at the moment.) It's a great motivator though and I love knowing how much I've done/not done. Highly recommend it!
My meeting with the nutritionist went well. I had lost another 3 pounds since seeing her, 4 if you count my weight the next day. For not exercising, I'd say I'm doing pretty well, though I know I need to add that in to maintain muscle and build up my heart. I'm just so unmotivated. Her goal for me though is to start taking at least 10,000 steps a day. I'm not sure if I will meet that or not by walking at lunch, but I'll have to see.
Things are pretty uneventful otherwise. This week I'm going to work on calming down. Today and tomorrow are supposed to be snowy and cold, but later in the week it should get a little warmer. Getting out and enjoying the air and, hopefully, the sun will help. I always feel so much better after taking a walk outside!
Showing posts with label Nutritionist. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Nutritionist. Show all posts
Monday, March 25, 2013
Tuesday, February 26, 2013
198.2 - 73.2 pounds to go
I think this last week went fairly well, so I'm trying not to let the scale get to me. My calories probably averaged around 1700 or so, which was probably too high. Until I get off my butt and start doing something, I can't justify fueling my body like it is active.
Instead of dreading my meeting with the nutritionist, I was actually looking forward to it since I had lost a few pounds - 6 to be exact! That was a pleasant surprise being as I felt like I've been moving in slow motion.
We discussed my obsession with the scale, and I've made a pact with an MFP friend to not weigh myself until my official weigh-in day. Because I cheated and stepped on the scale this morning, I actually changed my pact to not looking for 2 weeks. I'll still weigh-in on Sunday of this week for recording purposes, but I've decided I'm going to shut my eyes and ask my husband to record the number somewhere for a week. The obsession is far from healthy and it's only going to defeat me again if I keep this up. Ultimately, I'd like to weigh-in once a month when I see her, but baby steps first! So funny that for *years* I avoided that darn thing.
Same as the first time I started this journey, something just kind of clicked internally. The nutritionist said she could tell something had changed and that was really the best explanation I had for her. I can't pinpoint it or turn it off/on (I wish!) but it's back, so I'm not arguing. I had told myself that this year would be my year for positive changes, and so far it's shaping up to aim in that direction.
I started wearing make-up two weeks ago, which for me is just unheard of unless there is a special occasion. I think it's been a bit of self-discovery and feeling like I'm worth being noticed for once. I completely don't recognize this person I'm becoming, but I'd like for it to stick around. The nutritionist said she sensed that I had changed internally as well, like I am coming out of my shell.
Goals this week: Appointment with the doctor to discuss my BP (it's high again), and get my vitamin D and iron levels checked. Going to work on lowering my calories back down to 1500. I'm also going to move my ass, in some way, shape or form, and I'l adjust my calories up those days.
Instead of dreading my meeting with the nutritionist, I was actually looking forward to it since I had lost a few pounds - 6 to be exact! That was a pleasant surprise being as I felt like I've been moving in slow motion.
We discussed my obsession with the scale, and I've made a pact with an MFP friend to not weigh myself until my official weigh-in day. Because I cheated and stepped on the scale this morning, I actually changed my pact to not looking for 2 weeks. I'll still weigh-in on Sunday of this week for recording purposes, but I've decided I'm going to shut my eyes and ask my husband to record the number somewhere for a week. The obsession is far from healthy and it's only going to defeat me again if I keep this up. Ultimately, I'd like to weigh-in once a month when I see her, but baby steps first! So funny that for *years* I avoided that darn thing.
Same as the first time I started this journey, something just kind of clicked internally. The nutritionist said she could tell something had changed and that was really the best explanation I had for her. I can't pinpoint it or turn it off/on (I wish!) but it's back, so I'm not arguing. I had told myself that this year would be my year for positive changes, and so far it's shaping up to aim in that direction.
I started wearing make-up two weeks ago, which for me is just unheard of unless there is a special occasion. I think it's been a bit of self-discovery and feeling like I'm worth being noticed for once. I completely don't recognize this person I'm becoming, but I'd like for it to stick around. The nutritionist said she sensed that I had changed internally as well, like I am coming out of my shell.
Goals this week: Appointment with the doctor to discuss my BP (it's high again), and get my vitamin D and iron levels checked. Going to work on lowering my calories back down to 1500. I'm also going to move my ass, in some way, shape or form, and I'l adjust my calories up those days.
Tuesday, October 16, 2012
186.8 - 61.8 pounds to go
I'm keeping the number the same as last week, even though it was down 1.4 pounds on Friday. I don't want to keep "cheating" by logging weights from other days, just in case it was a fluke.
My training session Friday was incredibly hard. He had me doing new things that were so challenging that I sincerely felt like it was my first day working out. I had already been thinking about my knees lately. Even though I've lost weight, they seem to crack and snap a lot more and it kind of concerns me. And then what does the trainer have me doing? Jumping up onto a bench. I was absolutely petrified every time I had to do it. All I could picture was missing the bench and landing on my face, or catching the edge of the bench with my shoe. Instead, I landed on my face when I was doing the stability ball jackknives. If you've never seen one, feel lucky!
Basically, you get into push up position with your legs on a stability ball. Then you roll the ball inward, bringing your knees into your chest. Getting up onto the ball is a workout alone, and I tried several different ways, all of them being "the hard way." I got up there the first time just fine, he second time I kept falling off. And these hurt like mad. Of course there were girls at the gym doing these at the same time, making it look effortless and beautiful. Not mine! And when I went to get off, I think I took both legs off at the same time and ended up rolling forward and falling on my face. I kept making fun of myself for it, and told my trainer it was a good thing I didn't have him taking pictures this time around. His response made it that much worse: "you looked like a crime scene victim!" I guess a little humility is good though, or something. I left that workout feeling incredibly weak and fat.
At my meeting with the nutritionist, we decided to go back to basics. I explained that the scale still wasn't reflecting a loss, the sudden 8 pound gain has stuck around, and I just can't take it anymore. I need structure, and a plan. So, I'm eating toast with PB for breakfast with some almond milk, a banana at AM snack, half a sandwich and some fruit for lunch, a fruit (and yogurt if needed) for PM snack, and a small dinner of 3-4 oz. protein, a small starch, and veggies.
Being as I am worried about being hungry all the time, she wants me to drink tea before every meal. Way back, my doctor had said she didn't want me drinking too much tea, but never gave a reason. So, we're going with maybe she was worried about the caffeine until I can ask her, and until then, I am enjoying it! She also thinks that I might be experiencing a lot more hunger on the days I work because I am associating sitting at my desk with eating and watching the clock to see when I can eat next. It makes sense, and it might definitely attribute, so I'm willing to shake things up a bit.
I mentioned my fear for my knees, explaining how they don't hurt per se, but I notice that they make more noise when I pivot or whatnot, so she suggested drinking 2 tablespoons of tart cherry juice concentrate in the morning and afternoon with some water. I had this warm the other day and I am in love! It's not cheap, which has me a little concerned, but if it helps, I am all allotting the money for it! She also suggested that I wear knee braces when doing cardio, and if I try to keep up with jogging, to find a grassy/dirt path. I'm not sure how feasible that is but I'll have to keep my eyes open. At the very least, I'm hoping the braces will help keep things compressed and comforted.
Let's hope for a good weigh-in this coming week, and a better strength session where I don't feel so weak!
My training session Friday was incredibly hard. He had me doing new things that were so challenging that I sincerely felt like it was my first day working out. I had already been thinking about my knees lately. Even though I've lost weight, they seem to crack and snap a lot more and it kind of concerns me. And then what does the trainer have me doing? Jumping up onto a bench. I was absolutely petrified every time I had to do it. All I could picture was missing the bench and landing on my face, or catching the edge of the bench with my shoe. Instead, I landed on my face when I was doing the stability ball jackknives. If you've never seen one, feel lucky!
Basically, you get into push up position with your legs on a stability ball. Then you roll the ball inward, bringing your knees into your chest. Getting up onto the ball is a workout alone, and I tried several different ways, all of them being "the hard way." I got up there the first time just fine, he second time I kept falling off. And these hurt like mad. Of course there were girls at the gym doing these at the same time, making it look effortless and beautiful. Not mine! And when I went to get off, I think I took both legs off at the same time and ended up rolling forward and falling on my face. I kept making fun of myself for it, and told my trainer it was a good thing I didn't have him taking pictures this time around. His response made it that much worse: "you looked like a crime scene victim!" I guess a little humility is good though, or something. I left that workout feeling incredibly weak and fat.
At my meeting with the nutritionist, we decided to go back to basics. I explained that the scale still wasn't reflecting a loss, the sudden 8 pound gain has stuck around, and I just can't take it anymore. I need structure, and a plan. So, I'm eating toast with PB for breakfast with some almond milk, a banana at AM snack, half a sandwich and some fruit for lunch, a fruit (and yogurt if needed) for PM snack, and a small dinner of 3-4 oz. protein, a small starch, and veggies.
Being as I am worried about being hungry all the time, she wants me to drink tea before every meal. Way back, my doctor had said she didn't want me drinking too much tea, but never gave a reason. So, we're going with maybe she was worried about the caffeine until I can ask her, and until then, I am enjoying it! She also thinks that I might be experiencing a lot more hunger on the days I work because I am associating sitting at my desk with eating and watching the clock to see when I can eat next. It makes sense, and it might definitely attribute, so I'm willing to shake things up a bit.
I mentioned my fear for my knees, explaining how they don't hurt per se, but I notice that they make more noise when I pivot or whatnot, so she suggested drinking 2 tablespoons of tart cherry juice concentrate in the morning and afternoon with some water. I had this warm the other day and I am in love! It's not cheap, which has me a little concerned, but if it helps, I am all allotting the money for it! She also suggested that I wear knee braces when doing cardio, and if I try to keep up with jogging, to find a grassy/dirt path. I'm not sure how feasible that is but I'll have to keep my eyes open. At the very least, I'm hoping the braces will help keep things compressed and comforted.
Let's hope for a good weigh-in this coming week, and a better strength session where I don't feel so weak!
Monday, September 17, 2012
186.6 - 61.6 pounds to go
The scale is just not cooperating with me, and it's really starting to weigh on me (ha! see what I did there!) I met with the nutritionist and came clean about my lack of good decisions lately, but even with the slip-ups here and there, neither of us can explain why the scale suddenly jumped up 9 pounds a few weeks back, or why it's not going back down.
Emotionally, things have been really rough for me the last few months. After deciding that my relationship with my mother was nothing short of toxic and making the decision to estrange myself from my parents, I've been on a huge emotional roller coaster. I've had days where I'm fine and things seem clear to me, and then I have days where I seemingly cry for no apparent reason. It's one of the toughest decisions I've ever had to make and it's constantly bubbling beneath the surface.
During my meeting, the nutritionist and I discussed what could be causing the scale to not reflect my efforts. Sure, I've not been diligent about getting in my 12 glasses of water per day. Yes, there have been days (more than I'd like to admit) where I was over my calorie goal. Of course there are also days where the food choices I've made were not so stellar (birthday week wherein I had cake every night for 6 nights!) And unfortunately there have been days where I've neglected going to the gym or getting out for a walk. But for the scale to suddenly bounce up 8-9 pounds is unexplained. My belief that it was only water weight from a weekend of bad food has since waned after watching the scale stay up for weeks.
And then she asked about my thoughts and attitude toward myself. Let the waterworks begin! As I sat there blabbering on about my mother and how I am allegedly a "horrible daughter," I saw myself get smaller and smaller. Contrary to how I would describe myself, mentally I am horribly negative and tough on myself. And while there is no explanation as to why the scale is being so unkind lately, one thing was very clear: I have to learn to be positive.
My homework for the next few weeks is rough, but absolutely necessary. First, I need to identify my keys for success. One of the examples we wrote down was that I'm able to get my 12 glasses of water in when I'm mindful of the time and set time limits (e.g. 3 glasses by noon.) The second thing I need to do is to negate all of the negative thoughts I have by immediately countering them with a positive. So instead of repeatedly telling myself, "You only managed to lose 59 pounds in a year," I need to tell myself "But I lost 59 pounds! And over 40 inches!" Lastly, she suggested I focus more on picturing what I want the scale to read, rather than on what it says. Every night and every morning I step on the scale. This is hugely not recommended. I, personally, like seeing the difference between the two numbers and I know the reasoning behind those numbers enough to not freak out. Could I stop? Absolutely. That's not where my problem lies. My issue is that the numbers are not going down. Since the beginning of the year, I've lost roughly 15-20 pounds, which is barely even trying in my opinion. And lately, those numbers are bothering me. There's no explainable reason and it's starting to negatively impact how I view this journey. So instead of focusing on "the scale said X this morning," she wants me to envision stepping on the scale and seeing a smaller number and being excited about it.
So, do I think a mental overhaul will help the numbers come down? I'm not sure. The mind is a powerful thing, I won't deny that. While I don't think it's the only reason the scale isn't moving, I'm up to trying whatever I can in an effort to get back on track. Plus, I could use a little less negativity in my life!
Emotionally, things have been really rough for me the last few months. After deciding that my relationship with my mother was nothing short of toxic and making the decision to estrange myself from my parents, I've been on a huge emotional roller coaster. I've had days where I'm fine and things seem clear to me, and then I have days where I seemingly cry for no apparent reason. It's one of the toughest decisions I've ever had to make and it's constantly bubbling beneath the surface.
During my meeting, the nutritionist and I discussed what could be causing the scale to not reflect my efforts. Sure, I've not been diligent about getting in my 12 glasses of water per day. Yes, there have been days (more than I'd like to admit) where I was over my calorie goal. Of course there are also days where the food choices I've made were not so stellar (birthday week wherein I had cake every night for 6 nights!) And unfortunately there have been days where I've neglected going to the gym or getting out for a walk. But for the scale to suddenly bounce up 8-9 pounds is unexplained. My belief that it was only water weight from a weekend of bad food has since waned after watching the scale stay up for weeks.
And then she asked about my thoughts and attitude toward myself. Let the waterworks begin! As I sat there blabbering on about my mother and how I am allegedly a "horrible daughter," I saw myself get smaller and smaller. Contrary to how I would describe myself, mentally I am horribly negative and tough on myself. And while there is no explanation as to why the scale is being so unkind lately, one thing was very clear: I have to learn to be positive.
My homework for the next few weeks is rough, but absolutely necessary. First, I need to identify my keys for success. One of the examples we wrote down was that I'm able to get my 12 glasses of water in when I'm mindful of the time and set time limits (e.g. 3 glasses by noon.) The second thing I need to do is to negate all of the negative thoughts I have by immediately countering them with a positive. So instead of repeatedly telling myself, "You only managed to lose 59 pounds in a year," I need to tell myself "But I lost 59 pounds! And over 40 inches!" Lastly, she suggested I focus more on picturing what I want the scale to read, rather than on what it says. Every night and every morning I step on the scale. This is hugely not recommended. I, personally, like seeing the difference between the two numbers and I know the reasoning behind those numbers enough to not freak out. Could I stop? Absolutely. That's not where my problem lies. My issue is that the numbers are not going down. Since the beginning of the year, I've lost roughly 15-20 pounds, which is barely even trying in my opinion. And lately, those numbers are bothering me. There's no explainable reason and it's starting to negatively impact how I view this journey. So instead of focusing on "the scale said X this morning," she wants me to envision stepping on the scale and seeing a smaller number and being excited about it.
So, do I think a mental overhaul will help the numbers come down? I'm not sure. The mind is a powerful thing, I won't deny that. While I don't think it's the only reason the scale isn't moving, I'm up to trying whatever I can in an effort to get back on track. Plus, I could use a little less negativity in my life!
Monday, August 20, 2012
179.4 - 54.4 pounds to go!
Finally! To see that scale dip below 180 was such a great feeling, and it happening this weekend was all the better. I celebrated one year on Sunday, even though I technically started this journey last July. But after some thought, I decided to go with the date I became truly serious. I had been trying to eat a little less and eat better, but it wasn't until mid-August that we joined the gym and I signed up with MyFitnessPal. So, yes it's off, but ignore that!
I met with the nutritionist on Friday and I guess it went okay. I had only lost 3 pounds since my last visit with her, which was 6 weeks prior as opposed to 4. That was a bit depressing, but I had gone into the weekend saying that all negative thoughts were going to be pushed aside. She also pointed out, again, that I was eating 1600 calories before and now I'm actually eating more than that and should ween myself back down. I tend to disagree on this point though. I think I was eating too little when I was starting out, so while it was great to have the pounds just dropping off, I'd rather go about this in a healthy manner. I've also been pretty good lately about hitting the gym at least 4-5 days per week, so I think 1850 calories is completely safe. And from the scale saying I dropped 2 pounds, I'm going to keep on the way I am for now! Aside from that, we changed up my meal plan a little bit. I'd recently been feeling really hungry in the late morning up until dinner and she decided maybe it was due to having too few carbs before/after a workout. I'd been trying to really up my protein and lower my carbs (I always go over 40%) but she said 85-90g of protein is just fine and that I should think about upping my carbs to 45% to help fuel my workouts. As always, I'm willing to try it! Being hungry so often is really annoying and if that helps, I'm all for it! Aside from that, we're trying to mix in more fruits and veggies - nothing too new there. I'm always really bad with veggies being as I hate most of them unless they are cooked. Her idea involves either a side salad with lunch or some leftover veggies from dinner. Why I had never thought of that, who knows. I'm also back to eating a full sandwich at lunch to see if that helps. I had recently started eating just the meat and cheese since I kept going over on carbs, but the last week or two, every time I would get to the gym before lunch, my stomach would start growling like I hadn't eaten all day and I would just feel like I couldn't give it my all. So, more carbs equals more bread and hopefully less stomach growling and fatigue!
I spent a good few hours on Sunday trying to find "before" pictures of myself that weren't half naked and completely embarrassing. The best I could come up with was one from October, after I had already lost 20 pounds. Looking back, I wish I had taken pictures not only in limited clothing to see all my rolls and jiggly spots, but in an outfit or two for comparison sake. But, I found the picture below and decided it would suffice. The shirt is an XL and it was pretty tight though the lighting poorly shows it. The pants are the dreaded Target pants that say they are a size 20, but I currently wear a loose 16 (omg, to say that!) and those 20's fit almost perfectly. But, what you can't see in the picture is that they were about three inches from buttoning. (I decided to keep that picture to myself for now!)
My favorite picture is this next one. I had calculated the number of inches I had lost in the last year and decided to get a picture of me showing the number of inches with a measuring tape. It also shows how lose the shirt and jeans are a little better since I'm not standing with my arms straight at my sides. It's so weird to remember those jeans being so stinkin' tight. My thighs barely fit and I was just praying for the day when I could zip them up, even if it meant laying down on the bed first!
I met with the nutritionist on Friday and I guess it went okay. I had only lost 3 pounds since my last visit with her, which was 6 weeks prior as opposed to 4. That was a bit depressing, but I had gone into the weekend saying that all negative thoughts were going to be pushed aside. She also pointed out, again, that I was eating 1600 calories before and now I'm actually eating more than that and should ween myself back down. I tend to disagree on this point though. I think I was eating too little when I was starting out, so while it was great to have the pounds just dropping off, I'd rather go about this in a healthy manner. I've also been pretty good lately about hitting the gym at least 4-5 days per week, so I think 1850 calories is completely safe. And from the scale saying I dropped 2 pounds, I'm going to keep on the way I am for now! Aside from that, we changed up my meal plan a little bit. I'd recently been feeling really hungry in the late morning up until dinner and she decided maybe it was due to having too few carbs before/after a workout. I'd been trying to really up my protein and lower my carbs (I always go over 40%) but she said 85-90g of protein is just fine and that I should think about upping my carbs to 45% to help fuel my workouts. As always, I'm willing to try it! Being hungry so often is really annoying and if that helps, I'm all for it! Aside from that, we're trying to mix in more fruits and veggies - nothing too new there. I'm always really bad with veggies being as I hate most of them unless they are cooked. Her idea involves either a side salad with lunch or some leftover veggies from dinner. Why I had never thought of that, who knows. I'm also back to eating a full sandwich at lunch to see if that helps. I had recently started eating just the meat and cheese since I kept going over on carbs, but the last week or two, every time I would get to the gym before lunch, my stomach would start growling like I hadn't eaten all day and I would just feel like I couldn't give it my all. So, more carbs equals more bread and hopefully less stomach growling and fatigue!
I spent a good few hours on Sunday trying to find "before" pictures of myself that weren't half naked and completely embarrassing. The best I could come up with was one from October, after I had already lost 20 pounds. Looking back, I wish I had taken pictures not only in limited clothing to see all my rolls and jiggly spots, but in an outfit or two for comparison sake. But, I found the picture below and decided it would suffice. The shirt is an XL and it was pretty tight though the lighting poorly shows it. The pants are the dreaded Target pants that say they are a size 20, but I currently wear a loose 16 (omg, to say that!) and those 20's fit almost perfectly. But, what you can't see in the picture is that they were about three inches from buttoning. (I decided to keep that picture to myself for now!)
 |
| XL Shirt and size 20 (really like a 16) pant. 10/09/11 vs. 08/19/12 |
My favorite picture is this next one. I had calculated the number of inches I had lost in the last year and decided to get a picture of me showing the number of inches with a measuring tape. It also shows how lose the shirt and jeans are a little better since I'm not standing with my arms straight at my sides. It's so weird to remember those jeans being so stinkin' tight. My thighs barely fit and I was just praying for the day when I could zip them up, even if it meant laying down on the bed first!
 |
| Showing the number of inches lost - 40.25" |
So, here are my tallies for the year.
Weight lost: 59.2 pounds (238.6 down to 179.4)
Inches lost: 40.25 (almost as many inches as pounds!)
Measurements from 8/21/11 and 8/19/12:
Neck: 16" down to 13.5" - 2.5" lost
Bicep (R): 15" down to 13.25" - 1.75" lost
Bicep (L): 15" down to 13" (estimated starting measurement) - 2" lost
Chest: 49" down to 41.5" - 7.5" lost
Waist: 49" down to 41" - 8" lost
Hips: 50" down to 45" - 5" lost
Thigh (R): 26" down to 22.25" - 3.75" lost
Thigh (L): 26" down to 21" - (estimated starting measurement) - 5" lost
Calf (R): 17.25" down to 15" - 2.25" lost
Calf (L): 17.25" down to 14.75" (estimated starting measurement) - 2.5" lost
I keep hearing the voice in my head saying that some of those measurements are probably off (just look at the new thigh measurements and the difference between the two). But I'm pushing them back because I know those were only a sampling. There's really no true way to know how many inches I've lost but just look at all the areas I wasn't measuring that are now slimmer: my chin, my fingers, my ankles, etc. So, 40.25" it is whether it likes it or not. Now to work on all the negativity!
Oh, I almost forgot the best (well, maybe not) part! I got my hair hacked off on Saturday, so I was fussing around with it on Sunday morning, trying my best to make it look decent. As I turned my head this way and that, I noticed wrinkles on my chin. Not age wrinkles, but "I've lost weight" wrinkles, the ones caused by excess skin. The only way I could describe it is if you've ever played with balloon weights made from filling a balloon with sand. I pushed the current fat aside, the wrinkles went with it and stayed. I pushed the other way, and again, they went that way. I came out of the bathroom telling my husband about my new, weirdly scary but fascinating discovery, pushing my chin fat this way and that for him to see. It's my first taste of the loose skin issue and it's one I've been afraid of since the start. I've no doubt in my mind that it will be an issue after 10+ years of being obese. But, I'd rather be skinny and worry about loose skin than be miserable and obese again. Mark my words, self - you are never going back to 250 pounds again!
Monday, July 9, 2012
185.2 - 60.2 pounds to go!
Man, I cannot for the life of me get over that 60 pound mark. It's been teasing for weeks, just like the 199 pound mark did at the beginning of the year.
Last week I was lazy. I won't even sugarcoat it, it was pure laziness. And I can list out all of my excuses, but in the end, that's what they are: excuses. Our office building flooded, which I am mentioning more for my own sake because my memory is *horrible.* So, yeah, a water valve burst overnight in the building connected to ours, which sent tons of water barreling toward our building since the whole thing is on a slope. The water eventually poked holes in the drywall, resulting in buckets of water pouring out of our ceiling tiles. Thankfully, I had that next day off (though I would have been paid for an emergency shutdown, darn it!) and my cubicle didn't seem to take any damage. Last week, however, we were moved into a classroom with most of the building before taking up residence in a vacated office. My walking partner, however, was sent to a location about 30 minutes away. This, combined with being out of sorts in this huge open room that we've tried to make our own (with students and staff peering in at us, or namely me due to my position in the room), and it being over 95 degrees everyday, meant I did not walk at all. Not at the gym, not outside, nada.
The good news in all of that, however, is that not only did I lose the 3.8 pounds in water weight from the holiday party we attended last weekend, but I also maintained! At first I was kind of upset about maintaining, but when I used the calculator to triple check my numbers, I noticed that 1900 calories per day is my maintenance amount at a sedentary activity level. So, I only have myself to blame. Thankfully, my walking partner is back as of today, so we'll be getting out on lunch again.
I had another meeting with the nutritionist on Friday, and I kind of lied. I know, I know, shame on me and all that. But, I made the decision to do so based on past conversations with her and the recent hypothesis that I needed to break this darn plateau via increased calories and less exercise. Via her notes, I had gone from 188 to 185, so not a total failure; however, at my last meeting with her, my weight reflected water retention. According to the data I have, I was 185.8 at that weigh-in vs. this week's 185.2. Nothing to celebrate really. That wasn't my lie though. She asked how exercise is going, and I felt like I knew what her response would be if I said I was toning it back a bit. So I told her what I was doing before my reset: 3 days strength training, 6-7 days walking/cardio. And of course she was pleased. And of course I sat there thinking "and I felt like I had no life and the scale wasn't moving."
We discussed dinner being a bit better. On maintenance, I can't really say I was limiting dinner to only 450-500 calories, but I think there were nights when I definitely did better by only taking 3/4 of a serving. We also spoke about the gym we go to and how we looked into other ones. Currently, it seems as though our membership is pretty low ($46/mo for 2 people) compared to the couple we've looked in to for comparison. My big issue last I met with her was the gym announcing that their promo for free classes before 1pm was ending. Now classes are $7 per session, which could really add up. I also recently was really bummed at my training sessions coming to an end, which are not cheap at all! For now, he and I have agreed to back down to every other week. Since sessions have to be in advance, I figured I would agree to 20 sessions to get the cheapest price and then pay for 2 per month. It'll take a while, but it seemed better than fronting all of that money up front, especially when I don't have it! The nutritionist pointed out that trainers are usually really good for beginners, but not necessary after that unless you need motivation, but I definitely feel like I need that extra motivation. It's another person checking in with me every couple of weeks, and it's someone pushing me more than I push myself. She has me kind of kicking myself for verbally agreeing to set up more sessions and fork out all that money instead of taking classes, but it's something I really wanted to do. Hopefully my bank account can keep up.
Last week I was lazy. I won't even sugarcoat it, it was pure laziness. And I can list out all of my excuses, but in the end, that's what they are: excuses. Our office building flooded, which I am mentioning more for my own sake because my memory is *horrible.* So, yeah, a water valve burst overnight in the building connected to ours, which sent tons of water barreling toward our building since the whole thing is on a slope. The water eventually poked holes in the drywall, resulting in buckets of water pouring out of our ceiling tiles. Thankfully, I had that next day off (though I would have been paid for an emergency shutdown, darn it!) and my cubicle didn't seem to take any damage. Last week, however, we were moved into a classroom with most of the building before taking up residence in a vacated office. My walking partner, however, was sent to a location about 30 minutes away. This, combined with being out of sorts in this huge open room that we've tried to make our own (with students and staff peering in at us, or namely me due to my position in the room), and it being over 95 degrees everyday, meant I did not walk at all. Not at the gym, not outside, nada.
The good news in all of that, however, is that not only did I lose the 3.8 pounds in water weight from the holiday party we attended last weekend, but I also maintained! At first I was kind of upset about maintaining, but when I used the calculator to triple check my numbers, I noticed that 1900 calories per day is my maintenance amount at a sedentary activity level. So, I only have myself to blame. Thankfully, my walking partner is back as of today, so we'll be getting out on lunch again.
I had another meeting with the nutritionist on Friday, and I kind of lied. I know, I know, shame on me and all that. But, I made the decision to do so based on past conversations with her and the recent hypothesis that I needed to break this darn plateau via increased calories and less exercise. Via her notes, I had gone from 188 to 185, so not a total failure; however, at my last meeting with her, my weight reflected water retention. According to the data I have, I was 185.8 at that weigh-in vs. this week's 185.2. Nothing to celebrate really. That wasn't my lie though. She asked how exercise is going, and I felt like I knew what her response would be if I said I was toning it back a bit. So I told her what I was doing before my reset: 3 days strength training, 6-7 days walking/cardio. And of course she was pleased. And of course I sat there thinking "and I felt like I had no life and the scale wasn't moving."
We discussed dinner being a bit better. On maintenance, I can't really say I was limiting dinner to only 450-500 calories, but I think there were nights when I definitely did better by only taking 3/4 of a serving. We also spoke about the gym we go to and how we looked into other ones. Currently, it seems as though our membership is pretty low ($46/mo for 2 people) compared to the couple we've looked in to for comparison. My big issue last I met with her was the gym announcing that their promo for free classes before 1pm was ending. Now classes are $7 per session, which could really add up. I also recently was really bummed at my training sessions coming to an end, which are not cheap at all! For now, he and I have agreed to back down to every other week. Since sessions have to be in advance, I figured I would agree to 20 sessions to get the cheapest price and then pay for 2 per month. It'll take a while, but it seemed better than fronting all of that money up front, especially when I don't have it! The nutritionist pointed out that trainers are usually really good for beginners, but not necessary after that unless you need motivation, but I definitely feel like I need that extra motivation. It's another person checking in with me every couple of weeks, and it's someone pushing me more than I push myself. She has me kind of kicking myself for verbally agreeing to set up more sessions and fork out all that money instead of taking classes, but it's something I really wanted to do. Hopefully my bank account can keep up.
Tuesday, June 5, 2012
187.0 - 62.0 pounds to go
Ah, plateaus: depressing, frustrating, demotivating. It's rough watching the scale stay within the same couple pounds week after week. It's tough knowing I wanted to see the scale lower than it is by this date. It's difficult to figure out what caused it, why it's happening, and what to do. It nags, making me wonder why I'm bothering, what the point is, and who cares. It eats at me every time I step on the scale, log the weight for the week, and watch the one year date rapidly approach. And in spite of all that, it is worth it. It's tough, but it's temporary. I've come so far, there's no way I'd give up now.
I had the husband take my measurements before meeting with the nutritionist. Most of them stayed the same, a couple supposedly increased, a few decreased by a quarter of an inch. Considering they are subject to human error, since it's not like I have tattoos of where to measure, I wasn't really counting it as a victory.
The nutritionist seemed to think I'm just not doing enough anymore. Walking 40-50 minutes everyday isn't enough, nor is strength training once a week (this one I agree with.) So while it could be a plateau (which I thought she didn't believe in after the last one), she just wants me doing more. And I am willing to try, but I also feel like I have no life as a result. But, that's the price I have to pay for overindulging for so long.
Aside from exercising more, the nutritionist wants me to work on only eating 400-500 calories at dinner. This is going to be rough. Dinner is traditionally the biggest meal and to cut it way back just feels odd. And 400 calories at dinner is not a lot. I meticulously log all of my food, I create recipes when we cook from scratch, we try to cut out a lot of things, but sometimes it doesn't help. So I am trying, but I may need to gradually step down. One tip she gave me, that I loved (but shamefully haven't tried yet) was to take 1/3 less. As a typical American, if it's on my plate. By taking less, I may noticed I'm satisfied and save some calories, and if I'm not full, I can go back for the remaining 1/3 and feel like I am getting seconds. We'll see how that goes - I am hopeful.
Last night I couldn't bring myself to go to the gym. I had come home from work, started on dinner, ate, and then watched TV while letting it digest some (working out while full is BAD!) and decided I didn't want to come home and go to bed. Instead, I made myself proud and did a strength workout at home! I've done plenty of body weight exercises that I have no excuse to not do them at home: planks, side planks, calf raises, etc. And while I didn't take as long as I do at the gym, where I'm going from spot to spot and/or putting things away, I still managed to get a decent burn. I'm not sore today though, which might mean I need to make things harder on myself.
So, here's hoping for a better weigh-in this weekend. If the number doesn't move again, I'll up my calories to maintenance. The nutritionist stated the obvious in that I need less calories now that I weigh less, however, I don't think I am eating at maintenance. If 1800 calories a day is maintenance (1500 net after exercise), I greatly do not look forward to the future. Instead, I think I was eating pretty close to BMR (after exercise) for a while and my body is wondering what's going on. The first plateau was 5 months in, this one was at 4-4.5 months in. I just wish I had started steadily losing as much as I was before the first plateau. My body seemed to start the year off by saying, "ok, fun's over...we're not losing that much every week anymore. Deal with it!" I guess I just have to fight back.
I had the husband take my measurements before meeting with the nutritionist. Most of them stayed the same, a couple supposedly increased, a few decreased by a quarter of an inch. Considering they are subject to human error, since it's not like I have tattoos of where to measure, I wasn't really counting it as a victory.
The nutritionist seemed to think I'm just not doing enough anymore. Walking 40-50 minutes everyday isn't enough, nor is strength training once a week (this one I agree with.) So while it could be a plateau (which I thought she didn't believe in after the last one), she just wants me doing more. And I am willing to try, but I also feel like I have no life as a result. But, that's the price I have to pay for overindulging for so long.
Aside from exercising more, the nutritionist wants me to work on only eating 400-500 calories at dinner. This is going to be rough. Dinner is traditionally the biggest meal and to cut it way back just feels odd. And 400 calories at dinner is not a lot. I meticulously log all of my food, I create recipes when we cook from scratch, we try to cut out a lot of things, but sometimes it doesn't help. So I am trying, but I may need to gradually step down. One tip she gave me, that I loved (but shamefully haven't tried yet) was to take 1/3 less. As a typical American, if it's on my plate. By taking less, I may noticed I'm satisfied and save some calories, and if I'm not full, I can go back for the remaining 1/3 and feel like I am getting seconds. We'll see how that goes - I am hopeful.
Last night I couldn't bring myself to go to the gym. I had come home from work, started on dinner, ate, and then watched TV while letting it digest some (working out while full is BAD!) and decided I didn't want to come home and go to bed. Instead, I made myself proud and did a strength workout at home! I've done plenty of body weight exercises that I have no excuse to not do them at home: planks, side planks, calf raises, etc. And while I didn't take as long as I do at the gym, where I'm going from spot to spot and/or putting things away, I still managed to get a decent burn. I'm not sore today though, which might mean I need to make things harder on myself.
So, here's hoping for a better weigh-in this weekend. If the number doesn't move again, I'll up my calories to maintenance. The nutritionist stated the obvious in that I need less calories now that I weigh less, however, I don't think I am eating at maintenance. If 1800 calories a day is maintenance (1500 net after exercise), I greatly do not look forward to the future. Instead, I think I was eating pretty close to BMR (after exercise) for a while and my body is wondering what's going on. The first plateau was 5 months in, this one was at 4-4.5 months in. I just wish I had started steadily losing as much as I was before the first plateau. My body seemed to start the year off by saying, "ok, fun's over...we're not losing that much every week anymore. Deal with it!" I guess I just have to fight back.
Monday, May 7, 2012
187.8 - 62.8 pounds to go!
I'm a bit shocked at this week's amount: I drank lots of water, I ate over some days in the beginning of the week, and under on days later in the week, I worked out hard on Friday. I'm just sort of at a loss as to why it wasn't a bigger amount. I was really kind of disappointed to meet with the nutritionist on Friday and report the same weight I had had the week prior (for weigh-in, not last meeting with her.) It still amounted to 4 pounds in 4 weeks, but we were aiming for the scale to move a bit more between meetings.
Our personal trainer really kicked my butt on Friday. He had me doing a few new things, and some harder versions of other things. From his comments and my soreness, we worked primarily on glutes and legs. I'm still sore today actually!
My meeting with the nutritionist went well, aside from the weight issue. I'm sure she doesn't want me to get discouraged, so she said 4 pounds was great. In my head though, I recalled her saying we wanted to started seeing more than 3. Yes, 4 is greater than 3, I am aware of that. But I figured we were aiming more for 6+. She chastised us for eating at restaurants so often (which we needed, again) and pointed out that could definitely be hindering things. We're going to try plotting out a weekly dinner menu with at least one dinner that can be eaten twice, and we're looking for more baked recipes. I informed her of my love for baking and explained that out of the two batches of cookies I made (32 total), I only ate 2, which I think is damn impressive! I also told her about a co-worker helping me try and get a side/hobby business going to feed my love of baking so that I don't have to eat what I make. I don't think she feels it's a very good idea as she told me I need a new hobby. I'm sure she's concerned about me gaining everything back. I have no intentions of giving up baking though - sorry! But, in the meantime, she's on a mission to help me find more dinners that are baked, so that I can enjoy helping with dinner and maybe calm the baking bug.
Yesterday at the gym we both received some really nice feedback. One of the trainers happened to be behind the counter when we were walking over to gather our stuff to leave. He did a double-take and said he hadn't realized it before but suddenly noticed I have lost a bit of weight. Then I headed into the bathroom to wash my face off and one of the staff members said the same thing. She was asking how we've been doing it and told us to keep it up as we both look great. Since she walked out with me, she caught up with the trainer who had previously commented and asked him if he had noticed. It's really nice to hear once in a while (not all the time cause then I get self-conscious!) since it's hard to see it ourselves. We took pictures on Sunday morning, before we had gone to the gym, and I explained how I feel like I need a magnifying glass to see any differences. I see some and I think the problem is that they are very slight. When you think about losing 60 pounds, it seems like there should be a huge difference because, well, imagine 60 pounds of hamburger! It's a lot! But on someone like me who had a lot to lose, and still need to lose about another 60, the differences aren't very big at first. It's kind of depressing that I got that huge and had that much to lose and can't enjoy the big differences yet, but I'm happy to be on this journey nonetheless.
This week going forward, at least until July when classes start up again for us, we're going to work on only going out once per week and following a dinner menu for the rest of the week. I'm also going to force myself to go to the gym more often. Ideally, I'd like to be going at least Monday, Wednesday and Friday to do some strength training and then head there or walk outside on the other nights. One year is coming up fast and I'm really not liking the potential one year total, so I need to step it up!
Here are the measurements for this week:
Neck: 14"
Bicep (R): 13.5"
Bicep (L): 13.75"
Chest: 43.25"
Waist: 44"
Hips: 45.75"
Thigh (R): 22.5"
Thigh (L): 21.75"
Calf (R): 15.75"
Calf (L): 15.25"
Our personal trainer really kicked my butt on Friday. He had me doing a few new things, and some harder versions of other things. From his comments and my soreness, we worked primarily on glutes and legs. I'm still sore today actually!
My meeting with the nutritionist went well, aside from the weight issue. I'm sure she doesn't want me to get discouraged, so she said 4 pounds was great. In my head though, I recalled her saying we wanted to started seeing more than 3. Yes, 4 is greater than 3, I am aware of that. But I figured we were aiming more for 6+. She chastised us for eating at restaurants so often (which we needed, again) and pointed out that could definitely be hindering things. We're going to try plotting out a weekly dinner menu with at least one dinner that can be eaten twice, and we're looking for more baked recipes. I informed her of my love for baking and explained that out of the two batches of cookies I made (32 total), I only ate 2, which I think is damn impressive! I also told her about a co-worker helping me try and get a side/hobby business going to feed my love of baking so that I don't have to eat what I make. I don't think she feels it's a very good idea as she told me I need a new hobby. I'm sure she's concerned about me gaining everything back. I have no intentions of giving up baking though - sorry! But, in the meantime, she's on a mission to help me find more dinners that are baked, so that I can enjoy helping with dinner and maybe calm the baking bug.
Yesterday at the gym we both received some really nice feedback. One of the trainers happened to be behind the counter when we were walking over to gather our stuff to leave. He did a double-take and said he hadn't realized it before but suddenly noticed I have lost a bit of weight. Then I headed into the bathroom to wash my face off and one of the staff members said the same thing. She was asking how we've been doing it and told us to keep it up as we both look great. Since she walked out with me, she caught up with the trainer who had previously commented and asked him if he had noticed. It's really nice to hear once in a while (not all the time cause then I get self-conscious!) since it's hard to see it ourselves. We took pictures on Sunday morning, before we had gone to the gym, and I explained how I feel like I need a magnifying glass to see any differences. I see some and I think the problem is that they are very slight. When you think about losing 60 pounds, it seems like there should be a huge difference because, well, imagine 60 pounds of hamburger! It's a lot! But on someone like me who had a lot to lose, and still need to lose about another 60, the differences aren't very big at first. It's kind of depressing that I got that huge and had that much to lose and can't enjoy the big differences yet, but I'm happy to be on this journey nonetheless.
This week going forward, at least until July when classes start up again for us, we're going to work on only going out once per week and following a dinner menu for the rest of the week. I'm also going to force myself to go to the gym more often. Ideally, I'd like to be going at least Monday, Wednesday and Friday to do some strength training and then head there or walk outside on the other nights. One year is coming up fast and I'm really not liking the potential one year total, so I need to step it up!
Here are the measurements for this week:
Neck: 14"
Bicep (R): 13.5"
Bicep (L): 13.75"
Chest: 43.25"
Waist: 44"
Hips: 45.75"
Thigh (R): 22.5"
Thigh (L): 21.75"
Calf (R): 15.75"
Calf (L): 15.25"
Monday, April 9, 2012
193.0 - 68.0 pounds to go
These are definitely the kind of weeks that make it or break it for people trying to lose weight. For the past two weeks, I've been diligently walking 2 miles at work. It takes me roughly 37 minutes and is quite hilly in some spots. Fridays are gym days now that we have a personal trainer again, and we've even been going on Saturdays as well. So why the half pound gains the past couple of weeks? I have not a clue.
My meeting with the nutritionist went well. I told her about being constantly hungry the last couple of weeks and she set me up eating more snacks throughout the day saying that it's a sign of a higher metabolism (which I remembered her saying, but shouldn't that mean a loss, not a gain?) I am all for eating more though because the last couple weeks have been awful! It eventually got to the point where my morning banana would not hold me through to lunch. Aside from that, I had only lost 3 pounds since my previous visit and she said she wants to see me lose more, to which I said "you and me BOTH!" I guess all I can do is hope that it's muscle building from my walks and personal training sessions, but I've not researched how quickly muscle builds to know if that's a plausible cause.
We did measurements and photos yesterday. Here are my starting measurements and yesterday's:
Neck: 16" / 14.25" ---- 1.75" lost
Bicep: 15" / 13.75" ---- 1.25" lost
Chest: 49" / 43.75" ---- 5.25" lost
Waist: 49" / 43.75" ---- 5.25" lost
Hips: 50" / 46.5" ---- 3.5" lost
Thigh: 26" / 22.5" ---- 3.5" lost
Calf: 17.25" / 16" ---- 1.25" lost
Total inches lost: 21.75
My meeting with the nutritionist went well. I told her about being constantly hungry the last couple of weeks and she set me up eating more snacks throughout the day saying that it's a sign of a higher metabolism (which I remembered her saying, but shouldn't that mean a loss, not a gain?) I am all for eating more though because the last couple weeks have been awful! It eventually got to the point where my morning banana would not hold me through to lunch. Aside from that, I had only lost 3 pounds since my previous visit and she said she wants to see me lose more, to which I said "you and me BOTH!" I guess all I can do is hope that it's muscle building from my walks and personal training sessions, but I've not researched how quickly muscle builds to know if that's a plausible cause.
We did measurements and photos yesterday. Here are my starting measurements and yesterday's:
Neck: 16" / 14.25" ---- 1.75" lost
Bicep: 15" / 13.75" ---- 1.25" lost
Chest: 49" / 43.75" ---- 5.25" lost
Waist: 49" / 43.75" ---- 5.25" lost
Hips: 50" / 46.5" ---- 3.5" lost
Thigh: 26" / 22.5" ---- 3.5" lost
Calf: 17.25" / 16" ---- 1.25" lost
Total inches lost: 21.75
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