I decided to move my blogging activities over to tmblr
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Friday, February 18, 2011
Tuesday, February 8, 2011
In a battle between me and my cravings, who wins?
I DO! That's who.
Well, at least I'm working on it..
It's been a challenging 2 weeks for me on this weight loss journey. I've been tempted by chocolate, and I gave in a few times. Last Thursday at the scale, I registered a 0.6 gain. I didn't beat myself too much about it because I knew what I had done the previous week: one stressful night where I drank too much wine and went for the chocolate, and another few nights where I snacked on chocolate right before going to bed.
The good news is: I tracked everything.
The bad news is that I've been giving in to these cravings way too often. Am I self-sabotaging? Why is it harder for me to resist these things now than it was before? How am I going to continue to lose weight if I keep on doing this? What's the deal with my night-time snacking anyway?
These are all questions that I'm trying to answer right now.
Friday night I thought of throwing away all the chocolate that's in my house. There are some leftover Halloween candy, as well as some Brazilian chocolate I brought with me on my last trip. I decided against it. Instead, I put it all out in a bowl on the living room and had some. I also allowed my kids to have some, in hopes that the numbers would decrease.
Then Saturday morning I did some thinking during Zumba (for some reason I do great thinking while I'm exercising...). I came home and wrote messages to myself on bright orange index cards. There is one on my refrigerator door, at eye level that says: "Are you really hungry right now? or just bored/anxious? Brush your teeth, drink water, chew gum..."
There is another on the bathroom mirror that says "You are beautiful and strong"
There is another on my scale that says, "You can do this! Don't self-sabotage! You deserve it!"
And finally, the one by the chocolate bowl that says: "Who's stronger, You or Chocolate?"
I haven't touched the chocolate since. The cards are really helping me. I've been more mindful about my nighttime snacking. I will do my best to continue these positive behaviors.
Well, at least I'm working on it..
It's been a challenging 2 weeks for me on this weight loss journey. I've been tempted by chocolate, and I gave in a few times. Last Thursday at the scale, I registered a 0.6 gain. I didn't beat myself too much about it because I knew what I had done the previous week: one stressful night where I drank too much wine and went for the chocolate, and another few nights where I snacked on chocolate right before going to bed.
The good news is: I tracked everything.
The bad news is that I've been giving in to these cravings way too often. Am I self-sabotaging? Why is it harder for me to resist these things now than it was before? How am I going to continue to lose weight if I keep on doing this? What's the deal with my night-time snacking anyway?
These are all questions that I'm trying to answer right now.
Friday night I thought of throwing away all the chocolate that's in my house. There are some leftover Halloween candy, as well as some Brazilian chocolate I brought with me on my last trip. I decided against it. Instead, I put it all out in a bowl on the living room and had some. I also allowed my kids to have some, in hopes that the numbers would decrease.
Then Saturday morning I did some thinking during Zumba (for some reason I do great thinking while I'm exercising...). I came home and wrote messages to myself on bright orange index cards. There is one on my refrigerator door, at eye level that says: "Are you really hungry right now? or just bored/anxious? Brush your teeth, drink water, chew gum..."
There is another on the bathroom mirror that says "You are beautiful and strong"
There is another on my scale that says, "You can do this! Don't self-sabotage! You deserve it!"
And finally, the one by the chocolate bowl that says: "Who's stronger, You or Chocolate?"
I haven't touched the chocolate since. The cards are really helping me. I've been more mindful about my nighttime snacking. I will do my best to continue these positive behaviors.
Friday, January 21, 2011
Following up on current goals
If there's anything I've learned about being successful in my corporate retail job, it's the power of following up.
Here I am, applying my accountability skills to my health goals:
I set these goals 10 days ago, here:
1) Get back to 176 by Thursday by drinking lots of water and trying to stay within my points. Accomplished!
2) Get down to 170 in 6 weeks, on the 2/24 weigh in. I will do that by practicing the two things above, and also by exercising regularly. In Progress
3) Improve flexibility on my right hip. This is because my right hip is very inflexble in yoga, and I feel it's holding me back and preventing me from doing some of the poses. I will do this by continuing to practice yoga and by challenging myself when stretching. I found this amazing Yoga lady on youtube, and started practicing some of her videos. One of which immediately started helping me open up my hips.... AMAZING.
4) Spend an entire week without eating chocolate, starting now. Almost... this was written on a tuesday. Sunday I had some chocolate. Will continue to try every day.
5) Get more sleep: I was sleep deprived last week and I felt overly tired and craving chocolate. In Progress (and it's working!)
6) Tighten my abs by continuing to practice Yoga, PiYo, and crunches. In Progress
7) Continue to track everything I eat YES
8) Continue to measure and have portion control. YOU BET!
Original weight: 222lbs
Current weight: 174.8lbs
Pounds lost: 47.2lbs
Here I am, applying my accountability skills to my health goals:
I set these goals 10 days ago, here:
1) Get back to 176 by Thursday by drinking lots of water and trying to stay within my points. Accomplished!
2) Get down to 170 in 6 weeks, on the 2/24 weigh in. I will do that by practicing the two things above, and also by exercising regularly. In Progress
3) Improve flexibility on my right hip. This is because my right hip is very inflexble in yoga, and I feel it's holding me back and preventing me from doing some of the poses. I will do this by continuing to practice yoga and by challenging myself when stretching. I found this amazing Yoga lady on youtube, and started practicing some of her videos. One of which immediately started helping me open up my hips.... AMAZING.
4) Spend an entire week without eating chocolate, starting now. Almost... this was written on a tuesday. Sunday I had some chocolate. Will continue to try every day.
5) Get more sleep: I was sleep deprived last week and I felt overly tired and craving chocolate. In Progress (and it's working!)
6) Tighten my abs by continuing to practice Yoga, PiYo, and crunches. In Progress
7) Continue to track everything I eat YES
8) Continue to measure and have portion control. YOU BET!
Original weight: 222lbs
Current weight: 174.8lbs
Pounds lost: 47.2lbs
Tuesday, January 18, 2011
A letter to my future self
So I was passing time with Stumbleupon and found this cool little website: FutureMe.org
Unable to resist the temptation, I wrote a letter to my future self. Here it is pasted below. It will be delivered to me 38 weeks from now, when I expect to have lost the remaining 38 lbs of my goal.
"Dear FutureMe,
I wish this would work in reverse. I wish I could get messages from you instead, but whatever. We need to take what we can get, right?
I hope when you get this, you will have reached your weight loss goal. If not, I hope you're close to it. We've come this far not to make it. We worked hard for this, and we're continuing to institute life-long changes in our behaviors toward food and exercise.
How does it feel to not be "chubby", FutureMe? I bet it must feel awesome.
Now that you've reached your goal, do me a favor: don't forget how you got there, and don't take your health for granted. Continue to nurture your body and take care of yourself.
Enjoy your slim, fit and healthy body!
Your best friend,
Present Me."
Unable to resist the temptation, I wrote a letter to my future self. Here it is pasted below. It will be delivered to me 38 weeks from now, when I expect to have lost the remaining 38 lbs of my goal.
"Dear FutureMe,
I wish this would work in reverse. I wish I could get messages from you instead, but whatever. We need to take what we can get, right?
I hope when you get this, you will have reached your weight loss goal. If not, I hope you're close to it. We've come this far not to make it. We worked hard for this, and we're continuing to institute life-long changes in our behaviors toward food and exercise.
How does it feel to not be "chubby", FutureMe? I bet it must feel awesome.
Now that you've reached your goal, do me a favor: don't forget how you got there, and don't take your health for granted. Continue to nurture your body and take care of yourself.
Enjoy your slim, fit and healthy body!
Your best friend,
Present Me."
Tuesday, January 11, 2011
Getting back on track
As I mentioned on my last post, the holidays were full of temptations, breaks in routine and a general minefield that derailed slightly off my weight loss path. I say slightly because I still worked out regularly, and was able to not gain. Nevertheless, I also freaked out about my weight a lot! Especially on Mondays, after some particularly indulgent weekends. A few weeks in a row now, I've freaked out on Mondays, worked really hard through Thursday and was able to show either a small loss or a maintain at the WW weigh in.
What's been going on?
I've been having some fun. A couple of parties with wine, chocolate and appetizers. I love appetizers... there's nothing more genius than being able to try lots of different things in small portions. As much as I love this kind of thing, I realize how much it can derail me. I end up eating without quantifying, and later when I track... bang! 35 PointsPlus in 1 evening...
I know what you're thinking (if you're in WW): "That's why we have the 49 weekly PointsPlus!" yes, indeed. But if I haven't saved them for the occasion or planned my strategy, I'm in danger of falling back into old bad habits of mindless eating and general gluttony.
So here I am, during another "Damage Control" week, committing myself to getting back on plan, and to continue to do as well as I had been doing before the holiday. I thought I'd start by setting some small goals that I can hold myself accountable for:
1) Get back to 176 by Thursday by drinking lots of water and trying to stay within my points.
2) Get down to 170 in 6 weeks, on the 2/24 weigh in. I will do that by practicing the two things above, and also by exercising regularly.
3) Improve flexibility on my right hip. This is because my right hip is very inflexble in yoga, and I feel it's holding me back and preventing me from doing some of the poses. I will do this by continuing to practice yoga and by challenging myself when stretching.
4) Spend an entire week without eating chocolate, starting now.
5) Get more sleep: I was sleep deprived last week and I felt overly tired and craving chocolate.
6) Tighten my abs by continuing to practice Yoga, PiYo, and crunches.
7) Continue to track everything I eat
8) Continue to measure and have portion control.
I can do this!!!
Original weight: 222lbs
Current weight: 176.2lbs
Pounds lost: 45.8lbs
What's been going on?
I've been having some fun. A couple of parties with wine, chocolate and appetizers. I love appetizers... there's nothing more genius than being able to try lots of different things in small portions. As much as I love this kind of thing, I realize how much it can derail me. I end up eating without quantifying, and later when I track... bang! 35 PointsPlus in 1 evening...
I know what you're thinking (if you're in WW): "That's why we have the 49 weekly PointsPlus!" yes, indeed. But if I haven't saved them for the occasion or planned my strategy, I'm in danger of falling back into old bad habits of mindless eating and general gluttony.
So here I am, during another "Damage Control" week, committing myself to getting back on plan, and to continue to do as well as I had been doing before the holiday. I thought I'd start by setting some small goals that I can hold myself accountable for:
1) Get back to 176 by Thursday by drinking lots of water and trying to stay within my points.
2) Get down to 170 in 6 weeks, on the 2/24 weigh in. I will do that by practicing the two things above, and also by exercising regularly.
3) Improve flexibility on my right hip. This is because my right hip is very inflexble in yoga, and I feel it's holding me back and preventing me from doing some of the poses. I will do this by continuing to practice yoga and by challenging myself when stretching.
4) Spend an entire week without eating chocolate, starting now.
5) Get more sleep: I was sleep deprived last week and I felt overly tired and craving chocolate.
6) Tighten my abs by continuing to practice Yoga, PiYo, and crunches.
7) Continue to track everything I eat
8) Continue to measure and have portion control.
I can do this!!!
Original weight: 222lbs
Current weight: 176.2lbs
Pounds lost: 45.8lbs
Wednesday, December 22, 2010
The holidays truly are tough on weightloss
Almost 2 months ago, my Weight Watchers leader Alyce gave us all post cards and told us to write a goal of where we'd be at on the 1st week of January. At the time, this was 10 weeks away. She told us that holiday time was challenging, and that setting a short term goal was helpful. She said we could make them non-weight goals too, such as exercising more or eating more veggies. Or even to not lose anything, or even gain 2lbs!
At the time I was thinking to myself: "what? How can people choose a goal of not losing anything..." ever the goal oriented person, and being in a good momentum in my weight loss, I chose to lose 1.5lbs a week over those next 10 weeks. That put my goal at 172lbs in Jan wk1. It seemed achievable considering my rate of weight loss had been averaging about 2lbs a week through that time.
Unsurprisingly, my weight loss speed slowed down a bit: I'm lighter now. My body is more efficient and doesn't burn as many calories as it used to just to move around. It's also been getting colder and the carbs just call to me, especially at night! It took me a while to get through the 180s. My sister came for Thanksgiving and I ended up eating a lot.
Then I got back on track and had a good 2 weeks of substantial losses (-1.8 2 weeks ago, -2.4 last week). For once I thought, maybe it will be possible to get to that 172 by january week 1... After all, that's just 4.6lbs away. Then my dad came to visit, we ate out most of last weekend, and I didn't exercise as much. I also had a holiday party at work where I ate a loosely estimated 33 PointsPlus! (could have been more)
Conveniently, I skipped my daily weigh in this past weekend: Monday morning I was up 3.5lbs! Say it isn't so, Wii fit plus! So now I'm not so worried about my goal anymore. I'm worried about going to my weigh in tomorrow and not showing a gain! I haven't had a gain on the weekly WW weigh ins yet, and I really don't want this to be the first time.
It's probably fluid, my friend says... I hope she's right, although I always weigh in 1st thing in the morning, after going to the bathroom, so maybe not.
Since monday, I went down 2.2lbs, and I'm hoping to shed the remaining 1.3 today and tomorrow. If it shows flat when I go tomorrow evening, I will consider it a holiday victory! :)
The challenge: I'm taking my kids and my dad to an indoor water park resort today and we'll be returning tomorrow. This means we're basically going to be eating the next 4 meals out, maybe more.
I also won't be exercising, so let's hope the hot waters of the hot tub help me melt away a little fat.
If not, there's always next week!
Original weight: 222lbs
Current weight: 176.6lbs
Pounds lost: 45.4lbs
At the time I was thinking to myself: "what? How can people choose a goal of not losing anything..." ever the goal oriented person, and being in a good momentum in my weight loss, I chose to lose 1.5lbs a week over those next 10 weeks. That put my goal at 172lbs in Jan wk1. It seemed achievable considering my rate of weight loss had been averaging about 2lbs a week through that time.
Unsurprisingly, my weight loss speed slowed down a bit: I'm lighter now. My body is more efficient and doesn't burn as many calories as it used to just to move around. It's also been getting colder and the carbs just call to me, especially at night! It took me a while to get through the 180s. My sister came for Thanksgiving and I ended up eating a lot.
Then I got back on track and had a good 2 weeks of substantial losses (-1.8 2 weeks ago, -2.4 last week). For once I thought, maybe it will be possible to get to that 172 by january week 1... After all, that's just 4.6lbs away. Then my dad came to visit, we ate out most of last weekend, and I didn't exercise as much. I also had a holiday party at work where I ate a loosely estimated 33 PointsPlus! (could have been more)
Conveniently, I skipped my daily weigh in this past weekend: Monday morning I was up 3.5lbs! Say it isn't so, Wii fit plus! So now I'm not so worried about my goal anymore. I'm worried about going to my weigh in tomorrow and not showing a gain! I haven't had a gain on the weekly WW weigh ins yet, and I really don't want this to be the first time.
It's probably fluid, my friend says... I hope she's right, although I always weigh in 1st thing in the morning, after going to the bathroom, so maybe not.
Since monday, I went down 2.2lbs, and I'm hoping to shed the remaining 1.3 today and tomorrow. If it shows flat when I go tomorrow evening, I will consider it a holiday victory! :)
The challenge: I'm taking my kids and my dad to an indoor water park resort today and we'll be returning tomorrow. This means we're basically going to be eating the next 4 meals out, maybe more.
I also won't be exercising, so let's hope the hot waters of the hot tub help me melt away a little fat.
If not, there's always next week!
Original weight: 222lbs
Current weight: 176.6lbs
Pounds lost: 45.4lbs
Friday, December 10, 2010
Over the half-point!
Yesterday at my weigh in, the lucky scale in the back of the WW center finally stopped wiggling up and down at the number of 179. This means I'm over the half point between 222 and 137. This feels like a great accomplishment, as now I have less to lose than I've already lost! I celebrated by going to PiYo afterwards and working my butt off (literally! LOL). Lesson of the night, if you don't want other people to see your beige sports bra, don't wear a loose shirt to PiYo! (That shirt used to be tight on me, by the way...)
I put an updated pic in my picture page.
Original weight: 222lbs
Current weight: 179lbs
Pounds lost: 43lbs
I put an updated pic in my picture page.
Original weight: 222lbs
Current weight: 179lbs
Pounds lost: 43lbs
Monday, December 6, 2010
Size 12, Hello 170s!
Today is kind of a special day for me in this weight loss journey because I am currenlty wearing a pair of size 12 jeans that fit me without being too tight! On top of that, my scale graced me with a 179.8 this morning. This made me feel happy and hopeful that I won't be seeing the 180s again. These most recently lost 10lbs were a bit stubborn, and took a bit longer to burn through. Hopefully they'll let go completely and the 170s won't be as stubborn.
I've been doing the new PointsPlus plan for a week now, and It's been a bit different. I can't say I've found my groove yet, but the 0 point fruits have been nice. It's also harder with the winter weather. I feel it makes me want to eat more "comfort" foods like bread or baked goods.
I've also been back on the grind, working out everyday. The highlight of the past week is that I took a muscle sculpting class with my zumba teacher Gloria. She was substituting for the usual bosu sculpt teacher. Gloria's workout was short but very effective, because my arms were sore for the next 2 days.
Boring blog post, but just thought I'd share my mini milestone.
I've been doing the new PointsPlus plan for a week now, and It's been a bit different. I can't say I've found my groove yet, but the 0 point fruits have been nice. It's also harder with the winter weather. I feel it makes me want to eat more "comfort" foods like bread or baked goods.
I've also been back on the grind, working out everyday. The highlight of the past week is that I took a muscle sculpting class with my zumba teacher Gloria. She was substituting for the usual bosu sculpt teacher. Gloria's workout was short but very effective, because my arms were sore for the next 2 days.
Boring blog post, but just thought I'd share my mini milestone.
Thursday, December 2, 2010
A slow 2 weeks...
It's been a relatively slow 2 weeks for weight loss: down 0.8 the week before thanksgiving and -0.6 this week. Though I'm anxious my weight loss rate may have slowed down, I am also glad I didn't gain this week. My sister was here from Brazil and we ate out a lot. I know I over-ate my points & didn't exercise as much, so a loss is better than nothing.
This week has also been the first partial week in the new PointsPlus program by Weight Watchers. It was a bit shocking at first, when I realized all the carb foods went up in points, but I realize I'll just have to change my eating habits once again, and look for foods that are low in carbs and fat.
I wonder how long it will take Healthy Choice and Lean cuisine to change their products to better fit the WW plan. I know they're different companies, but they all cater to the same customer, and it's in HC's best interest to produce low point meals.
I'm disappointed my deli flats, healthy life breads and sugar free pudding are now 2 points instead of 1. But I couldn't be happier about bananas being 0 points now!!! LOVE that!
So in the end, proteins stayed the same, processed carbs went up, and fruits went down.
I am already doing it. Pounds, melt away!
Original weight: 222lbs
Current weight: 180.8lbs
Pounds lost: 41.2lbs
This week has also been the first partial week in the new PointsPlus program by Weight Watchers. It was a bit shocking at first, when I realized all the carb foods went up in points, but I realize I'll just have to change my eating habits once again, and look for foods that are low in carbs and fat.
I wonder how long it will take Healthy Choice and Lean cuisine to change their products to better fit the WW plan. I know they're different companies, but they all cater to the same customer, and it's in HC's best interest to produce low point meals.
I'm disappointed my deli flats, healthy life breads and sugar free pudding are now 2 points instead of 1. But I couldn't be happier about bananas being 0 points now!!! LOVE that!
So in the end, proteins stayed the same, processed carbs went up, and fruits went down.
I am already doing it. Pounds, melt away!
Original weight: 222lbs
Current weight: 180.8lbs
Pounds lost: 41.2lbs
Saturday, November 13, 2010
Coffee & Yoga
About a month or so ago, I took the class called "PiYo" for the first time and fell instantly in love. At first I felt my body unsteady, and had a lot of difficulty doing all the poses. Still, the class was so dynamic that it kept me challenged. I felt amazing afterward.
When I really like something, I become slightly obsessed and want more of it. I looked for PiYo videos online but couldn't find anything like my class. So I decided to do a mini Yoga routine on the wii fit plus every morning, taking occasional sips from my cup of coffee, right after my morning weigh in. This has become part of my routine now. I do it everyday to strenghen my core and to improve my balance. The best part of this is that I feel more in control and have longer lines in PiYo class. I still cannot do most of the advanced poses, but I'll get there someday.
Another great consequence is that the Wii Fit Plus body test has given me a "fitness age" of 31! This makes me so happy because the first time I tested, I was so unbalanced and weak, it had given me a fitness age of 46.... I'm 32 years old. I know the test is based on how well you can control your body, and now I feel validated for my efforts.
I know overall, the wii fit plus is not enough to maintain a challenging exercise program, but for these little things like morning yoga workouts and daily weight tracking it is excellent!
So this week I lost another 2.2lbs and I'm so happy. I can fit into a size 14 now, and the other day I donated my 2 plus size coats to charity, and bought myself a new coat that's size L!!!!! Size L! I can't believe it! I had been shopping on the plus size department for so long... I feel like a whole new world has been made available to me.
I hate to say this, because I live in the Chicago area, but I can't wait for it to get colder so I can wear my new coat!!! (It's been unseasonably warm for November).
Original weight: 222lbs
Current weight: 182.8lbs
Pounds lost: 39.2lbs
When I really like something, I become slightly obsessed and want more of it. I looked for PiYo videos online but couldn't find anything like my class. So I decided to do a mini Yoga routine on the wii fit plus every morning, taking occasional sips from my cup of coffee, right after my morning weigh in. This has become part of my routine now. I do it everyday to strenghen my core and to improve my balance. The best part of this is that I feel more in control and have longer lines in PiYo class. I still cannot do most of the advanced poses, but I'll get there someday.
Another great consequence is that the Wii Fit Plus body test has given me a "fitness age" of 31! This makes me so happy because the first time I tested, I was so unbalanced and weak, it had given me a fitness age of 46.... I'm 32 years old. I know the test is based on how well you can control your body, and now I feel validated for my efforts.
I know overall, the wii fit plus is not enough to maintain a challenging exercise program, but for these little things like morning yoga workouts and daily weight tracking it is excellent!
So this week I lost another 2.2lbs and I'm so happy. I can fit into a size 14 now, and the other day I donated my 2 plus size coats to charity, and bought myself a new coat that's size L!!!!! Size L! I can't believe it! I had been shopping on the plus size department for so long... I feel like a whole new world has been made available to me.
I hate to say this, because I live in the Chicago area, but I can't wait for it to get colder so I can wear my new coat!!! (It's been unseasonably warm for November).
Original weight: 222lbs
Current weight: 182.8lbs
Pounds lost: 39.2lbs
Sunday, November 7, 2010
Is my weight loss is too fast?
I was happy to have lost another 2.2 lbs at my weekly weigh in this week. When I got home to log it into the Weight Watchers etools weight tracker, it told me I was losing too fast. It says my average weekly weightloss has been of 2.1 lbs a week, and that the average should stay under 2 lbs otherwise it could be risky to my health.
I'm actually ecstatic it has been coming off at this pace, and it would be awesome if it continues in the same speed, but I'm realistic, and know that at some point I will reach a plateau and it will slow down.
Also, shouldn't the first however many pounds come off faster when you have a lot to lose, as opposed to someone who's only 10 to 20 pounds overweight? I started at 85 above my goal weight, after all.
The etools site also told me to slow down my weightloss. How in the world would I do that??? I've been exercising everyday and eating my points!
Oh well... I really think this is a non-issue and will continue doing what I've been doing. So far, my body has been rewarding me for my efforts and I am committed to rewarding it with more healthy living.
Original weight: 222lbs
Current weight: 185lbs
Pounds lost: 37lbs
I'm actually ecstatic it has been coming off at this pace, and it would be awesome if it continues in the same speed, but I'm realistic, and know that at some point I will reach a plateau and it will slow down.
Also, shouldn't the first however many pounds come off faster when you have a lot to lose, as opposed to someone who's only 10 to 20 pounds overweight? I started at 85 above my goal weight, after all.
The etools site also told me to slow down my weightloss. How in the world would I do that??? I've been exercising everyday and eating my points!
Oh well... I really think this is a non-issue and will continue doing what I've been doing. So far, my body has been rewarding me for my efforts and I am committed to rewarding it with more healthy living.
Original weight: 222lbs
Current weight: 185lbs
Pounds lost: 37lbs
Thursday, October 28, 2010
PiYo,
After a week of staying on plan and fully following my exercise program, the WW scale has graced me with the good news that I lost another 2.6lbs. The new thing I did this week is that I've added 15 minutes of yoga to my morning routine. That PiYo class (Pilates & Yoga) I take on thursdays has inspired me to work on my posture, core control, and balance.
I always feel fantastic after my PiYo workout. I feel elongated, taller, and my back feels naturally straight. I also love the fact that it's fast. I don't have to hold the poses for very long because we keep moving onto other poses. This truly was a great idea.
The funny thing is that tonight, after the class was done, I mistakenly took somebody else's yoga mat with me! When I went back to look for mine it was gone, so I'm hoping that person will come back next week with my mat and we can exchange. I feel like this might have made a good "Seinfield" or "Curb your enthusiasm" episode.
Anyway, today I set my goal on WW (officially). I've had this goal since I started and it hasn't changed: 137. That means a total loss of 85 lbs.
137 because it's the highest threshold for a healthy BMI for my height, and because it's around the weight I was in college, before I got pregnant. I figure when I get there, I'll have erased a decade of being obese. My son is 9 years old now, and after his pregnancy I was at 185. The weight crept up from there and increased with my daughter's pregnancy.
Right now I'm almost at the weight I was immediately post delivery. Once I start going down past that, it will be like losing the "pregnancy weight" ..... hehehe... only almost 10 years later!!!
Better late than never!
Original weight: 222lbs
Current weight: 187.2lbs
Pounds lost: 34.8lbs
I always feel fantastic after my PiYo workout. I feel elongated, taller, and my back feels naturally straight. I also love the fact that it's fast. I don't have to hold the poses for very long because we keep moving onto other poses. This truly was a great idea.
The funny thing is that tonight, after the class was done, I mistakenly took somebody else's yoga mat with me! When I went back to look for mine it was gone, so I'm hoping that person will come back next week with my mat and we can exchange. I feel like this might have made a good "Seinfield" or "Curb your enthusiasm" episode.
Anyway, today I set my goal on WW (officially). I've had this goal since I started and it hasn't changed: 137. That means a total loss of 85 lbs.
137 because it's the highest threshold for a healthy BMI for my height, and because it's around the weight I was in college, before I got pregnant. I figure when I get there, I'll have erased a decade of being obese. My son is 9 years old now, and after his pregnancy I was at 185. The weight crept up from there and increased with my daughter's pregnancy.
Right now I'm almost at the weight I was immediately post delivery. Once I start going down past that, it will be like losing the "pregnancy weight" ..... hehehe... only almost 10 years later!!!
Better late than never!
Original weight: 222lbs
Current weight: 187.2lbs
Pounds lost: 34.8lbs
Thursday, October 21, 2010
Hello, 180s! It's been a while..
Today I had my weigh in and I made it just below 190 with a weight of 189.8! :) this is very exciting, and it validates my efforts this week.
Last week I was disappointed I had only lost 0.4lbs, but I knew exactly what I'd done differently that week: I had lightened up my breakfast and skimped on the mid day snacks. This had given me more points at night, which I used to get more snacks in.
Turns out those extra snacks at night were not my friend, so I went back to a more substantial breakfast with higher point snacks (greek yogurt in the afternoon really helps). I also drank lots of water and kept up my exercise program.
Even with a major french food (fattening) eating event on saturday night, I was able to come down 2.2 lbs.
My suspicions about my change in habits being the culprit are confirmed and I am not resolved to continue my program as I have this week.
I'll be saying hello to the 170s soon.
Original weight: 222lbs
Current weight: 189.8lbs
Pounds lost: 32.2lbs
Last week I was disappointed I had only lost 0.4lbs, but I knew exactly what I'd done differently that week: I had lightened up my breakfast and skimped on the mid day snacks. This had given me more points at night, which I used to get more snacks in.
Turns out those extra snacks at night were not my friend, so I went back to a more substantial breakfast with higher point snacks (greek yogurt in the afternoon really helps). I also drank lots of water and kept up my exercise program.
Even with a major french food (fattening) eating event on saturday night, I was able to come down 2.2 lbs.
My suspicions about my change in habits being the culprit are confirmed and I am not resolved to continue my program as I have this week.
I'll be saying hello to the 170s soon.
Original weight: 222lbs
Current weight: 189.8lbs
Pounds lost: 32.2lbs
Tuesday, October 19, 2010
Non-scale victories
Well, this is a big one: I had a cholesterol/glucose screening today and all my numbers are within healthy levels! I'm so excited my weight loss program is proving effective on every front!
Last week I was a bit disappointed with my 0.4 loss, but I'm focusing on the positive: I've lost inches, my cholesterol numbers went down, and I feel greater than I have in years.
The rest of the weight will drop off eventually.
Last week I was a bit disappointed with my 0.4 loss, but I'm focusing on the positive: I've lost inches, my cholesterol numbers went down, and I feel greater than I have in years.
The rest of the weight will drop off eventually.
Thursday, October 14, 2010
0.4,,,, I'll take it!
So the scale at my Weight Watchers meeting showed me down 0.4lbs compared to last week.
This after me obsessing about the discrepancies between my WW home scale and the Wii fit plus. I was disapointed I didn't lose more. But it did round up the 30 lbs lost (20 in WW). I got another 5lb sticker! I'm also 1 lb away from making my 10% in WW, so maybe next week?
What happened this week? I wonder if it was something I changed in my routine that didn't allow me to burn as many calories as the previous week. The two things I noticed is that my breakfasts have been lighter, and I've been having more veggies/fruits as snacks instead of yogurt. Intuitively, this would mean less calories, right?
But then this also makes my points lower, and I end up having more slack at night for snacks. Maybe it's those evening snacks!
This week I'm going to try to go back to my previous routine. We'll see what happens.
Original weight: 222lbs
Current weight: 192lbs
Pounds lost: 30lbs
This after me obsessing about the discrepancies between my WW home scale and the Wii fit plus. I was disapointed I didn't lose more. But it did round up the 30 lbs lost (20 in WW). I got another 5lb sticker! I'm also 1 lb away from making my 10% in WW, so maybe next week?
What happened this week? I wonder if it was something I changed in my routine that didn't allow me to burn as many calories as the previous week. The two things I noticed is that my breakfasts have been lighter, and I've been having more veggies/fruits as snacks instead of yogurt. Intuitively, this would mean less calories, right?
But then this also makes my points lower, and I end up having more slack at night for snacks. Maybe it's those evening snacks!
This week I'm going to try to go back to my previous routine. We'll see what happens.
Original weight: 222lbs
Current weight: 192lbs
Pounds lost: 30lbs
Wednesday, October 13, 2010
Conflicting scale stories... really a symptom of somehting else
Since my second blog post, "To Weigh or not to Weigh" I've decided that weighing myself every day is effective for me.
It helps me keep on top of my daily progress, and makes me accountable for making better choices.
Usually this ritual involves me waking up, brushing my teeth and hair, getting dressed, starting coffee, and turning on my wii fit plus. I like to weigh myself there because it keeps track on a neat little graph, and it tells me whether I've gone up or down from the last time I weighed myself. If I do it everyday at the same time, the likelihood of variations being minimal is high.
Since I started tracking, I usually go down. I sometimes see a spike up, and those are a due to weird circumstances like after flying on an airplane, or on the days before my period. Then they go down again.
It's such a wonderful feeling to see today's BMI show a lower number than yesterday, and then switch to "weight" to see the negative number! Also, when the Wii lady says "That's Obese", it gives me hope that someday she'll say "That's Overweight!" and then when I get under that... I wonder what she says?
Nevertheless, this week has been a bit weird...
You see, I also bought a WW Scale that measures body fat. So naturally I weigh myself on that one too right after or before the Wii fit plus scale. I'm not interested in the number itself. The official number is what I get at the weigh in at the WW meeting. What I'm interested in are the fluctuations from day to day.
This week, my WW scale has stubornly stuck itself on 191.2. Wii fit plus has been going down, then up. No day has said 0 difference. How can that be??? I'm so confused.
The truth is that I'm afraid this week might not show as much of a loss as I wanted. I've been maintaining my workout routine, eating more fruits/veggies... I guess some weeks are just a bit harder than others.
Regardless, I'm in this for the long haul, so whatever the WW scale may show me tomorrow, I'm still feeling better than I have in years!
It helps me keep on top of my daily progress, and makes me accountable for making better choices.
Usually this ritual involves me waking up, brushing my teeth and hair, getting dressed, starting coffee, and turning on my wii fit plus. I like to weigh myself there because it keeps track on a neat little graph, and it tells me whether I've gone up or down from the last time I weighed myself. If I do it everyday at the same time, the likelihood of variations being minimal is high.
Since I started tracking, I usually go down. I sometimes see a spike up, and those are a due to weird circumstances like after flying on an airplane, or on the days before my period. Then they go down again.
It's such a wonderful feeling to see today's BMI show a lower number than yesterday, and then switch to "weight" to see the negative number! Also, when the Wii lady says "That's Obese", it gives me hope that someday she'll say "That's Overweight!" and then when I get under that... I wonder what she says?
Nevertheless, this week has been a bit weird...
You see, I also bought a WW Scale that measures body fat. So naturally I weigh myself on that one too right after or before the Wii fit plus scale. I'm not interested in the number itself. The official number is what I get at the weigh in at the WW meeting. What I'm interested in are the fluctuations from day to day.
This week, my WW scale has stubornly stuck itself on 191.2. Wii fit plus has been going down, then up. No day has said 0 difference. How can that be??? I'm so confused.
The truth is that I'm afraid this week might not show as much of a loss as I wanted. I've been maintaining my workout routine, eating more fruits/veggies... I guess some weeks are just a bit harder than others.
Regardless, I'm in this for the long haul, so whatever the WW scale may show me tomorrow, I'm still feeling better than I have in years!
Friday, October 8, 2010
Despite the blondie, I still lost 2lbs!
Sometimes I wonder if the scale at WW is set to show a lower number than other scales.... I admit, I have been obsessing about my daily weight. I feel it's the only way for me to know whether what I'm doing is working or not. Besides, I bought this awesome WW scale that tells you your % of body fat, BMI, Water % and bone density! How cool is that???
I just love seeing my % of body fat decreasing ever so slowly over time. I started at 44% and now I'm in the 38%s. This means all the muscle work I've been doing is paying off. On Wednesday I spent 90 minutes in classes at the gym:
45 minutes in "sculpting" which was excruciatingly hard.
15 minutes in "six pack attack" ... do we need 15 minutes to work on abs? If we have my abs, we do.
30 minutes of aerobics.
(I really felt my arms the next day. Maybe one day I'll have Madonna arms!!! :) )
I also went swimming yesterday, which always feels amazing.
Tonight? I'm trying a Bosu Sculpt workout class.
I'm so happy I'm doing this for myself! Nothing beats the feeling of finally conquering something that seemed un-conquerable, not even the taste of yummy bad-for-me foods.
So last night at WW, the scale showed me 2lbs lighter. I'm 0.4lbs away from having lost 30lbs, and it feels like I just started my weight loss program 1 month ago (it's really been 10 weeks).
Size 14, here I come!
Original weight: 222lbs
Current weight: 192.4lbs
Pounds lost: 29.6lbs
I just love seeing my % of body fat decreasing ever so slowly over time. I started at 44% and now I'm in the 38%s. This means all the muscle work I've been doing is paying off. On Wednesday I spent 90 minutes in classes at the gym:
45 minutes in "sculpting" which was excruciatingly hard.
15 minutes in "six pack attack" ... do we need 15 minutes to work on abs? If we have my abs, we do.
30 minutes of aerobics.
(I really felt my arms the next day. Maybe one day I'll have Madonna arms!!! :) )
I also went swimming yesterday, which always feels amazing.
Tonight? I'm trying a Bosu Sculpt workout class.
I'm so happy I'm doing this for myself! Nothing beats the feeling of finally conquering something that seemed un-conquerable, not even the taste of yummy bad-for-me foods.
So last night at WW, the scale showed me 2lbs lighter. I'm 0.4lbs away from having lost 30lbs, and it feels like I just started my weight loss program 1 month ago (it's really been 10 weeks).
Size 14, here I come!
Original weight: 222lbs
Current weight: 192.4lbs
Pounds lost: 29.6lbs
Sunday, October 3, 2010
Rude awakening - the points in eating out
So last night my friend and I went out to dinner at Applebee's. I wanted to go there because I knew they had WW menu options (I love the steak portobello).
All was going well until my friend said she wanted to order the "Maple Butter Blondie" as dessert, and that she wanted me to share it with her.
What should I have done? In hindsight, I should have said no, or convinced her to order one of the dessert shooters (the tiny ones that cost less).
Instead, I said it would be fine, and decided, since I had been good all day, that I could eat half and use some of my everyday points. I thought, how bad can this be??? Well... the dessert was delicious. There was a hot buttery sauce over icecream, pecans, and a cake.
When I got home I pulled up the Applebee's Nutritional Info to calculate my points. As I scrolled down to find this decadent dessert, I was surprised as my eyes glanced over some of the callorie counts over some of the other menu items,(Crispy Orange chicken =2030, Quesadilla burger = 1420, Oriental chicken salad =1310...), and realized when i found the Maple butter blondie, it would not be good.
Are you ready for this? The Maple butter blondie had 52 grams of fat and 990 calories!!!! That's 23 points! I knew it would be bad, but I was not ready for just how bad it turned out to be.
Time to go burn half of it out in Zumba!!!
All was going well until my friend said she wanted to order the "Maple Butter Blondie" as dessert, and that she wanted me to share it with her.
What should I have done? In hindsight, I should have said no, or convinced her to order one of the dessert shooters (the tiny ones that cost less).
Instead, I said it would be fine, and decided, since I had been good all day, that I could eat half and use some of my everyday points. I thought, how bad can this be??? Well... the dessert was delicious. There was a hot buttery sauce over icecream, pecans, and a cake.
When I got home I pulled up the Applebee's Nutritional Info to calculate my points. As I scrolled down to find this decadent dessert, I was surprised as my eyes glanced over some of the callorie counts over some of the other menu items,(Crispy Orange chicken =2030, Quesadilla burger = 1420, Oriental chicken salad =1310...), and realized when i found the Maple butter blondie, it would not be good.
Are you ready for this? The Maple butter blondie had 52 grams of fat and 990 calories!!!! That's 23 points! I knew it would be bad, but I was not ready for just how bad it turned out to be.
Time to go burn half of it out in Zumba!!!
Thursday, September 30, 2010
Weigh in day!!! :)
I lost another 2.6lbs this week. I am so happy to keep my weight loss momentum. 190 feels so close! Maybe another 2 or 3 weeks and I'll be there.
This past weekend I sorted through my clothes and separated all my size 18 stuff to take to the goodwill store. I am comfortably fitting into all my old size 16 pants, and incredibly enough, I did fit into one size 14 non-stretch jeans! It was still a bit too snug, though, so I'm waiting on that one.
Today I went swimming at my gym. Add that to the list of things I've been doing lately that I hadn't done in forever:
Swimming, jumping rope, jogging, cartwheels, jumping jacks...
I love it! I love being active and feeling like my body can do anything! Zumba and "So you think you can dance" have really inspired me to keep finding new ways to dance. One of my dreams is to be good at swing dancing, so I'll start looking into that soon. I also want to get to a point where I can jog/run comfortably.
My heart rate monitor helps me keep on top of the fat burning zone and keeps me accountable for mazimizing my workout, so now I've started to do short bursts of jogging interspersed with my lunch time walk. That helps keep my heart rate in the 130s.
I feel like I'm just rambling on and on about fitness now, and I can hardly recognize myself. Time to end this post. Good night everyone! Stay healthy!
Original weight: 222lbs
Current weight: 194.4lbs
Pounds lost: 27.6lbs
This past weekend I sorted through my clothes and separated all my size 18 stuff to take to the goodwill store. I am comfortably fitting into all my old size 16 pants, and incredibly enough, I did fit into one size 14 non-stretch jeans! It was still a bit too snug, though, so I'm waiting on that one.
Today I went swimming at my gym. Add that to the list of things I've been doing lately that I hadn't done in forever:
Swimming, jumping rope, jogging, cartwheels, jumping jacks...
I love it! I love being active and feeling like my body can do anything! Zumba and "So you think you can dance" have really inspired me to keep finding new ways to dance. One of my dreams is to be good at swing dancing, so I'll start looking into that soon. I also want to get to a point where I can jog/run comfortably.
My heart rate monitor helps me keep on top of the fat burning zone and keeps me accountable for mazimizing my workout, so now I've started to do short bursts of jogging interspersed with my lunch time walk. That helps keep my heart rate in the 130s.
I feel like I'm just rambling on and on about fitness now, and I can hardly recognize myself. Time to end this post. Good night everyone! Stay healthy!
Original weight: 222lbs
Current weight: 194.4lbs
Pounds lost: 27.6lbs
Wednesday, September 29, 2010
Feeling Great - keep leaving me, pounds!
Last night I felt sore all over! The GOOD kind of sore: Abs tight and slightly aching, legs hurting a bit as I went up the stairs, upper back and triceps making themselves known every now and then... It turns out this class I took Monday night did the trick: "Power Hour" (or more like "Power 45 minutes"!).
The teacher is new to the gym and she seems to be from a slavic country (judging from ther accent). The class consists in a series of rotation exercises, some cardio and some weights. She had us spend 1:30m in each exercise, and during the last 30 seconds she'd have us speed it up. Then it was time to move onto the next one. During the class I got tired and kind of breathless a few times (jumping rope, anyone?).
I also was very much challenged by the push-ups on the ball, and the steps on the bosu ball. After 11 different stations (there were 11 of us), she had us pair up and do some squats while squeezing the big ball and throwing it to each other. To top it all off, she had us finish with a tough partner ab exercise where I had to lift my legs from the ground, while my partner pushed them down! A few weren't bad, but try doing it for a minute and a half! That was killer!!
One of her tricks is during the final count-down of every exercise, the teacher would go "5, 4, 3, 2, 2, 2, 1"! Nice...
During the class I felt challenged and wasn't sure whether I was liking it or not. The next evening I felt "the good kind of sore" I mentioned above, and now I'm convinced I have to take this class again. After all, "change is the right combination of discomfort and hope" :)
Happy exercising!
The teacher is new to the gym and she seems to be from a slavic country (judging from ther accent). The class consists in a series of rotation exercises, some cardio and some weights. She had us spend 1:30m in each exercise, and during the last 30 seconds she'd have us speed it up. Then it was time to move onto the next one. During the class I got tired and kind of breathless a few times (jumping rope, anyone?).
I also was very much challenged by the push-ups on the ball, and the steps on the bosu ball. After 11 different stations (there were 11 of us), she had us pair up and do some squats while squeezing the big ball and throwing it to each other. To top it all off, she had us finish with a tough partner ab exercise where I had to lift my legs from the ground, while my partner pushed them down! A few weren't bad, but try doing it for a minute and a half! That was killer!!
One of her tricks is during the final count-down of every exercise, the teacher would go "5, 4, 3, 2, 2, 2, 1"! Nice...
During the class I felt challenged and wasn't sure whether I was liking it or not. The next evening I felt "the good kind of sore" I mentioned above, and now I'm convinced I have to take this class again. After all, "change is the right combination of discomfort and hope" :)
Happy exercising!
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