Sunday, June 28, 2009

3.91

When I left home on this walk this morning, 6:40 am, it was 81 degrees. I was drenched in sweat by the time I made it back home.

Thursday, June 18, 2009

3.24

I haven't taken a walk in awhile, but I made the effort this past Tuesday night while I was just across the lake from New Orleans. The northshore of Lake Pontchatrain, bordering Mandeville, LA, has a nice walking area. So I did that the other night while I was there for work.

No weigh-in & plans

I've been out of town this week preventing a weigh-in at a meeting. In all honesty, I'm thinking about going back to online only membership as I am back on track now. I needed the past 3 months to relearn the program and the accountability of someone else weighing me each week. Now, I think I've progressed, with blogging & twitter, to not needing that anymore. That is a good thing for two reasons: 1) less dollars to shell out to WW each month and 2) the online support is awesome. I feel accountable to those that read/comment on this blog and those that I interact with on twitter.

I'm not going to renew my monthly pass this month, but I will keep my online membership. I like the points tracker and that is really what I need. I'm not really a user of the WW online forums, but I do like to peruse the recipes online and use the recipe builder. So there are some aspects of the online membership I like.

While I don't post on here as often as others post, I have this space for when I need to. For some reason, I just can't find the time do so each and everyday, but it is useful when I do. I appreciate those of you that read & comment when you can. Your support is valued! Being healthy is not easy to do and requires support. This is one of my outlets and it truly works.

Thursday, June 11, 2009

Staying accountable, up 2.8

This has been a crazy week and the next 2 weeks will be the same. I've not been following the program to a T, but that is to be expected right? We can't be perfect and we make mistakes. I think we would all be Stepford Wives if we were all perfect, and how boring would that be?

I missed my weigh-in yesterday do to an event, but I didn't want to not weigh. So I went to another location and I'm 2.8 pounds. I'm not upset in the least about that development. Why you ask? Well, off the scale successes are just as great. I've definitely lost inches because my size 12 pants don't feel quite as tight as they did 2 months ago and my size 14 pants are really loose. Hooray for successes that aren't tied to the scale!

Saturday, June 6, 2009

Put the fork down

Do you take your time when you eat? That is one thing that I'm working on doing. Dong so allows you to enjoy the food and actually begin to feel full as you're eating. I don't recall where I read that, but it is true. The basic idea is to place the food in your mouth. Put the fork down, chew, swallow, enjoy the food. Perhaps take a drink of water. Repeat.

Instead, many of us practice the following: place food in mouth and immediately place additional food on the fork for the next bite. Or better yet, place more food in our mouths when we haven't swallowed the previous amount.

Raising hand. Yes, I'm guilty of that. Are you?

I'm doing better though. I'm working on taking my time to eat so that I enjoy the food. I've found that using this tactic allows me to feel full, which in turn causes me to eat less. I've also read that it takes up to 15 minutes to begin to feel full. Therefore, taking your time to eat will aid in that. If you scarf your food down in 5-10 minutes, you may have a tendency to eat more because you don't have that full feeling.

Have you thought about trying that tactic?

Thursday, June 4, 2009

Negative 3.2

So I was down 3.2 lbs at weigh-in yesterday. I'm happy with that result and it was totally unexpected. As I stated in my previous post, I never really know what to expect when I step on the scale. What I do know is that I must step on the scale. I won't know my progress, good or bad, if I don't.

What have I been doing over the past week and a half that may have helped is:
  • really focusing on getting in a sufficient amount of water in each day (I know everyone is different and don't really see the benefit, but it is needed for me)
  • doing a new workout routine (I think it has helped to break up the monotony of my previous routine)
  • limiting my alcohol intake to wine and limiting how much of that I drink
  • fruits & veggies
  • veggies & fruits
  • grilled and baked meats
Just some of my tactics that are helping - oh and tracking. If it passes my lips, it is held accountable and tracked.

Wednesday, June 3, 2009

Weigh in

Diva on a Diet posted on twitter today that she didn't know what to expect on the scale since she wasn't weighing each day.

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Personally, I don't weigh-in each day. To me, that is entirely too much pressure. Watching the numbers go up & down depending on what happened the day before (if weigh-in is in the AM) or the course of the day (if weigh-in is in the PM) is just too much for me. I only weigh-in at my WW meeting. Doing so allows for consistency in the scale that I use, and the time is generally the same each week.

One thing that I never know, until I get on the scale, is what number will appear. I can't predict that I will have a gain/loss based on how I ate or the amount of exercise that I did. I can't because it seems that on those weeks when I am totally on program, drink a fair amount of water each day, get in at least 5 days of exercise, and keep track of everything - I may only lose .5 or even have a gain. Conversely, when I do the opposite or the minimum in the days leading up to a weigh-in I may have a huge loss. In essence, it is totally random.

Therefore for me, I only weigh in one day a week. How about you?

Tuesday, June 2, 2009

Are you a member?


Are you a member of the clean plate club? I'm not!

I was forced to be a member as a child. You may have heard the same thing (or a variation):
  • there are starving children in Africa, India, China,etc.

  • I paid a lot of money for that and you better eat it all!

  • Carrots are good for sight; Broccoli is good for you; Liver gives you iron, etc.


  • All of those were reasons that my brother and I had to clean our plate even if we were full. Now what did that do to our waistlines over the years.

    I still hear that, at times, from my guy. We eat out on occasion and we all know how much food restaurants provide. Entirely too much! Since I've changed my eating habits, I'm determined to only eat until I'm full. There is no need to eat e.v.e.r.y.t.h.i.n.g. on my plate! None whatsoever.

    Therefore, I'm not a member of the clean plate club. I think making a child or an adult eat everything on their plate because of X, Y, or Z is ludicrous. My eating all of that food is not going to help that child in whatever foreign country or even a child that is in need in my own community.

    So I leave so food on my plate at times. That extra food will go to my hips, stomach, thighs, etc. Why do that to myself? Why make myself feel miserable?

    It has stopped. I'm not doing it. I'm no longer a member and I'm proud to be a non-memmber of the clean plate club. How about you?