Yesterday was a tiring day. I went on my short run of the week (I do a short, medium and long run a week) and I reached 2.74 miles. I just looked at my running plan and I'll be going from running in 3 minute intervals up to 5 minute intervals next week! Looking forward to seeing how far I'll get. This is why running is for me, I love writing out the plans and seeing how the numbers look! It's so encouraging to see me run further and faster week by week. The Christmas Eve 5 mile race is 3 weeks away so I think if I keep up the consistency in my running I'll be confident when race day comes. I'm looking forward to doing a race with my Mum, the last time I did one I was a little bit selfish and ran ahead since I had trained for it. She said she didn't mind, but I still felt a little guilty! It was worth it though since I almost beat my 10K record. This time I'm gonna stick with her so I'm guessing we'll be doing small bursts of running/walking.
Weight is 170.6 lbs this morning, not unusual after a run, hoping to see a drop tomorrow! Fingers crossed!
After the run the BF and I went to do some more Christmas shopping. Ugh, I am so done with shopping for other people haha! I love thinking about gifts to get, don't get me wrong, but the act of going out and finding stuff is tiring to me. Plus it reminds me how little money I had to spend on myself, I would love a new wardrobe! I've been wearing the same clothes for about 4 years so I'd love an update. However we got everything we needed, we were going to walk downtown and wander around but we both weren't in the mood so we stayed in. We made our once a month treat of homemade burgers which was delicious! We fried mushrooms in butter, (hence why this is a once a month treat!) added creamy peanut butter and a bunch of curried spices with some coconut milk and it created this wonderful sauce. Then we just cooked our burgers as normal - it was a hit! We used the Bob's Burgers cook book and we've not been disappointed yet. Nomnomnom.
Today we're going to do the last trek out to get a Christmas gift for the BF's mum. I bought some Coca Cola PJ's when I went to the World of Coca Cola and she loved them, so we're going to Uber into downtown Atlanta and try and get a pair for her. I really hope they have some! If not, we're going to go get lunch and then Uber back home so it won't be a completely wasted journey if we can't find them.
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munchey - Yeah, it's always quiet this time of year! New Years is always the most active challenge . I'm all about habit changes, I'm doing pretty well at tracking them using the app I think I mentioned to you before. So far I've found the app really useful, I'm almost ready to step things up a notch! I think if the BF's mum doesn't decide we'll get her a Nordstrom gift card. That's the problem with that side of the family, they have expensive tastes. BF's sister (who I love, don't get me wrong) sent her Christmas present ideas and all of them were over $60. You're right, the size 11's are a great inspiration. They fit...just a little too snug. I put them on yesterday and I just didn't feel comfortable walking around in them. I bought a belt yesterday to go with my 13's too since I found they were falling down a little. Can't believe the huge size difference between the 11 and 13!
wannabehealthy - You're right, I know I wouldn't be bothered about the price of a gift. My sister has this awful mentality of her worth to other people is based on how much money they spend on her. She started freaking out that her fiance's Dad hadn't spent the same amount of money on her son vs. his other grandchild. It's ridiculous!
You know I don't really have a place I can safely call "home" yet. I definitely feel the most at home with my BF in our own apartment, but in terms of the place itself I haven't found that one location where I feel like I could live there for the rest of my life. I definitely call my parents house "home", but I don't like the city they live in. The US is definitely one of my homes for sure, but I still feel like Tokyo is a home too! It's strange to think about. Nay, I was pretty selfish this year with going home for a month! I haven't been home in 1 year and 8 months so I'm going back to be with my family/friends. After this year we'll probably start alternating Christmas's at each of our families but only spending a week or 2 there. If we ever get financially stable ideally we'd go to both families but alternate whether it'll be Christmas or New Year. Being in an international couple is hard sometimes!
Honestly I think snacking inbetween meals can be highly beneficial. If you can control your snacks and the sizes to make them small and healthy just to tide you over it'll prevent overeating at meal times. I know whenever I don't snack my eyes get bigger than my belly and I overeat at dinner time. You should never feel like you're starving in the day. Maybe your third habit could be exercise based? Just like walking around the block after lunch or something.
Personally I like to keep my weight loss charts private. Having it on display is a sure fire way for people to critique what you're doing. I use an app to track my habits, but an online excel sheet could work too!
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Riestrella, I don't care about DH seeing my chart and we are the only two here. But if my step-daughter would visit, she is like the town crier. Loves to be the one to spread the news and criticize.
It's very interesting to hear about all your different "homes." The only country I have been to other that the US is Canada. The opportunity has never presented itself.
This project is not about weight loss, but about changing bad eating habits, so the 3 changes should be food related. My snacking doesn't usually have anything to do with hunger, but just happens when a food item comes into my line of vision and I eat it without considering if I'm hungry. Those are calories I don't need, so I want to stop that habit. I try to make sure my meals contain enough to hold my hunger until the next meal. Snacks are important for some others, to keep them from getting too hungry between meals. Each person's situation is different. Leaving some food on my plate like I did yesterday teaches me that I don't have to eat everything once my hunger is satisfied. It was very foreign to me to put that food down the disposal but it made me feel as if I was in control.
I was able to update the chart without any difficulty today. Big + for me! LOL
Yes, gift giving can get very competitive, and that is not in the spirit of giving. Mostly it's the parents that notice, and the children are very happy with their gift. Parents should never let their children see that they notice and should encourage their children to be appreciative. It promotes strength of character that the child will need going into adult life.
I remember in my younger days when I went to an exercise class faithfully, it got so crowded in January, they almost had to set 2 different classes, but by February it started to thin out and go back to the regulars. Many people are thinking now that they will start after the holidays. I always think to be diligent during December to avoid a big gain. I would love to weigh a little bit less on Jan 1 than I did on Dec 1.
I've been catching up on posts and concur with the observations of competitive gift giving. If I find something that I absolutely know the recipient will enjoy, it gives me a great feeling and I don't mind shopping. Honestly, though, I'm in the camp who believes gift certificates and gift cards are two of the best inventions for both givers and receivers. My goal isn't to outdo someone; heck, it's challenge enough just to find good gifts.
Rie, I'm not able to access the chart on my phone but I'm reporting my weight this week as 207.2. Down a bit but I have no idea why.
I called my weight this week at 170.2 lbs, up 0.6 lbs from last week. But from that weight to today there was Thanksgiving, Friendsgiving and yesterday was another big food day. Yesterday we spent the day at our friends and I made a gingerbread house (we may have made it more of a gingerbread brothel which was highly amusing) and we also had turkey and sage soup, bruschetta and a buffalo dip both served on toasted baguette slices. We didn't eat much of the gingerbread but the food was wonderful and homemade. Oh, I also practiced making egg nog for my Dad (my BF made it for him one year and now he doesn't stop mentioning it around Christmas!) and that was a hit. I only had one glass, it was far too strong for me! TMI alert: I think it did a number on my stomach, I excused myself and went to my own apartment to use my bathroom (we're neighbours) and I had a rather large runny poop! It was the only one so I didn't catch diarrhea, so strange. Sometimes my stomach responds to certain things with a big "NOPE!!" and I think egg nog is one of them!
Today was a lazy Sunday. It was rainy and gloomy which is perfect slob out weather! I watched Elf in the morning, then basically watched TV and played video games all day. After a busy week it was a great day! I spoke to a friend on Skype too, she's a close friend but sometimes she's kind of rude! I'll set time aside to talk to her and then she'll abruptly say "I'm going now" and it never feels like we've fully caught up before she leaves to do something else. I've lived abroad for a total of 3 years so I really value the friends in my life who take the time to talk to me and catch up. I definitely know she wants to talk to me and stay in touch but I feel like it's all on the surface stuff instead of really talking like we used to. Anyway, I'm venting!
This next week the BF is going to be working all day so I'll be alone for most of the day. It'll be a true test of my focus for my health and work since I'm more likely to stay in check with him around. Got to be more independently focused!
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wannabe - That's fair enough about your habit breaking, I'm on a mission myself to break my habits. It's interesting because my sister developed this weird thing about money all on her own. My parents have never been people to talk about money or care about the value of a gift. I remember clearly one Christmas she looked at my gifts and then her own and saw I had more gifts than her (she had more expensive gifts hence the difference in amounts) and said that is was unfair, which I would never do! I can't imagine how my parents must have felt having their young daughter say "she has more presents than me" when they went through all that effort to make sure she was happy. I wish my parents would teach her more manners even though she is 30 now . She's extremely rude. They just tend to shut her down and then walk away from the situation without telling her why she shouldn't behave a certain way.
curvy - I'm in both camps, I don't mind shopping for people I know well because I see something and say "__ would love this!" and I enjoy buying those gifts. The family members who are picky and I know don't appreciate the gesture...that's what sucks! I agree, gift cards are the best!
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It's a good thing that December is just a practice month with my 3 changes chart, because the only place I'm making any progress it leaving food on my plate, and even that is very hard for me. Yesterday at breakfast, all I left was a small piece of toast, but it was still food left on the plate. At dinner, I had rotisserie chicken, with veggies....carrots, brussels sprouts, broccoli, cauliflower. I consider that all healthy food, and in my mind, it's OK to eat all of it. It killed me, but I fed the last bite of chicken to the dog, and put the small bit of veggies down the disposal. But I hated doing it and would have enjoyed eating them. I love veggies. But it's all about no longer cleaning my plate, so I have to throw them away. It's symbolic. I have not been drinking my 4 bottles of water. Maybe 2, tops. And I have not been sticking to no in-between eating. I am still popping things in my mouth as they appear.
Last night I had a dream that I opened my refrigerator and there was absolutely nothing in it!! I wonder what that means for me to dream that? I wonder if it's really bothering me to throw that food away, thinking that the day might come where I have no food. When I was growing up, we were very poor, due to father's illness. No welfare or food stamps back then. As I got older, I realized that there were days when my mother wasn't sure if she was going to have anything to feed us. Days when she fried up a big pan of potatoes and that was dinner, because that was all she had. I wonder if that has something to do with my difficulty throwing food away? Even when I lived alone before I got married, my refrigerator was very empty. But I had to pay my rent, car payment and other bills before I bought food. I never realize how lucky I am now that there's always something in the house to eat, but that's no excuse to overeat.
168 lbs this morning That's a 2.2 lb drop from last week! So happy to be heading solidly into the 160's again!
I've been hibernating for the last 3 days due to the rainy, gloomy weather here. It's nearly 8:30am and it feels like 6am because of how dark it is out there! You'd think I'd be used to it being from England and all, but after clear blue skies for most of the year it's hard getting used to the crap weather Tomorrow, however, it's supposed to clear up so I'm going to go on a run. I'll run Wednesday, Friday, Sunday methinks! Gotta keep it up for that Christmas eve race after all.
Food wise I'm doing pretty well I'd say. There are no savory snacks in the house so I'm not tempted to eat extra. I think that's why I've seen such a drop on the scale. I think I'm getting my water intake?! I keep drinking green tea in my giant mug instead of cold water, which is fine, but I need to make sure it's enough.
Figured I'd write an update on changing my habits!
- Exercise 3x a week for 4 weeks: 2 week streak
- Only eating oatmeal on run days: 22 day streak
- Eat breakfast at table every other day: 20 day streak
I'm really happy that I've managed to keep up with these habits, soon after I hit 30 days for each habit I'll be stepping it up a notch and working out 4x a week, cutting down to 1 slice of bread for lunch instead of 2 and eating breakfast at the table every day.
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wannabe - Despite the act of leaving food being symbolic it seems that throwing the food away is taking a toll on your mind because of your principles. I completely understand, you had a hard upbringing that you've overcome, I hate wasting food too. Here's an idea: instead of leaving food on your plate and then throwing it away, why don't you put a small Tupperware on the table when you eat. Then when you're close to finishing, put a small amount in the Tupperware when you're done. This way you're still not cleaning your plate and you're saving food for the next day for lunch or a small side to lunch. Changing a habit should be something you're proud to do and shouldn't give you so much turmoil.
It reminds me of when I was at dinner with someone last week and she was a very slender woman, she ordered a cheeseburger and fries but cut her burger in half and asked for a to-go box. She still got to enjoy the meal she ordered, but cut the portion size in half so she didn't overeat. My Mum had a rough upbringing, she came from a house of domestic violence and her own mother didn't take care of her that well. Since she had this background she always forced her children to finish their food on their plate. I hated doing it, especially since I was such a picky eater, but there was a level of guilt to leaving any food on the plate. I know now that she did it because she didn't want to see her kids go hungry like she was, but I don't think she realised that it created this subconscious need to finish everything no matter how full I get. I've worked hard on stopping when I'm full, especially if the food is delicious! Just the other night I ate probably a third of the meal before putting it in a Tupperware and freezing it. That would have been unthinkable years ago.
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Actually, I just realized that my plan went right out the window today. I reverted back to my old ways. We had breakfast at McDonald's because we were early for a doctor's appointment. I ate it all. Well, no, I didn't eat the biscuit, so I guess I did leave it and throw it away. I didn't have lunch, and had a Wendy's salad for dinner. Ate all of that. I am a little hungry now at 8:45 probably because I didn't really eat very much today. I had so much on my mind I think because of this dr appointment, but it went well, so I'm OK now. When I think about it, I can't believe that's all I ate today. I didn't even think about food. I must have been busy!
I think it's great all the running you do. It's good exercise and gives you a sense of accomplishment when you finish a race in good time. I was never much of a runner. I was always a clumsy klutz, LOL and now I have arthritis in my knee and even walking is a challenge sometimes. If you develop an interest in it at a young age, I think that interest follows you into adulthood and even into old age. I wish I knew when I was young what I know now.
Yesterday was a mix of bad and good. The bad was that I ate a LOT of my homemade gingerbread house. I picked off the candy (like that would help ) and just went to town. In my stupid mind I said to myself "if I just finish it off right now then I won't have it to eat tomorrow!" instead of eating it in moderation. I'm not even hormonal or nothin', just darn greedy. (I hate that 3FC censors me, we're all adults here!).
The good is that I went on a 3.18 mile run! Woohoo! Back on track with running, gonna run again tomorrow and Saturday since I'm busy Sunday morning now. Other than my gingerbread meltdown I was good with food. I had a nice vegetable pasta, I think next time I'll adjust the recipe since it was a bit too watery and not saucy enough.
Because of my stupidity yesterday I'm up to 168.8 lbs, a 0.8 lb gain. That could be because of the run as well, I always gain after a run.
I Skyped with my family last night since it was my mum's birthday, I'd been feeling a lot of anxiety towards going home because of my family dynamic (basically a family of pushing each others buttons on purpose) but speaking to everyone on Skype relieved that anxiety a little. I'm SURE there'll still be some bickering, but knowing everyone was happy to see me and are excited to have me home is a nice feeling.
I also had a conference call with the directors of a project I'm working on and they're so nice. They make me feel like my opinion is valued and are so thankful of my help, even though I should be the one thanking them (and I do profusely!). Just got a lot of warm fuzzy feelings about life right now
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wannabe - Glad to hear the doctors appointment was ok! I can completely relate to stress eating in that type of situation. I'm very much against fast food places like McD's, but I know sometimes the chemicals in those foods call to us in moments of panic. Everything that McDonald's makes disgusts me...but those fries! I miss 'em, Sorry to hear you suffer from arthritis in your knee. Something to focus on is that losing the weight will relieve so much of the pressure on your joints and make walking easier for you. I'm sure it won't cure it, but it'll help! I have issues with my back and if I don't exercise it really tightens and I can't move very well. Exercise is so important to me because of it, if I don't move I really feel the pain return.
Last edited by Riestrella; 12-08-2016 at 10:39 AM.
Sorry for the double post, but the weirdest weight loss related thing just happened to me!
Yesterday I had a semi-bad day. I did a tonne of laundry, since we don't have a machine it means lugging it up the road to the apartment complex's laundry room. In the laundry room there's a vending machine, yesterday I felt naughty and decided to buy a Coke. I drank my coke while working and had a couple of small handful of M&M's that were left over from gingerbread house making. The rest of the day food wise was pretty normal, I got my water intake, I didn't eat Oatmeal, had a healthy dinner etc.
This morning I get on the scale and expect to see 169 lbs, going up from my 168.__ lbs I've been seeing the last couple of days. I look down, say "yup, that looks about right" and go about on my day. As I'm reading my book I think "wait a minute...did the scale just say 167.6 lbs?" so I hop back on the scale and sure enough I'm 167.6 lbs today?! What is this madness?! I just found it so amusing that I saw the number and automatically assumed it was a gain and completely spaced on the fact that I lost weight!!
So I'm down to 167.6 lbs this week! That's a 2.6 lbs drop from last week! I'm just so, SO happy to be seeing some progress at last. It's been years since I've felt this positive about weight loss.
Last edited by Riestrella; 12-09-2016 at 09:59 AM.
Riestrella, I am so happy for your loss and can definitely imagine the joy of finally getting the process working. I am back up to starting weight today, and at the same time I am frustrated I am pleased it is not a gain from my starting weight. Do you think you are better focused or doing better at exercise/diet or both? I would love to catch the bug! I haven't been eating at night and my DH says just keep it up.
It's amazing how much going off my routine can mess with my body. A few of you might remember I was editing a feature length film a while ago. The director set up a premiere for the film, just something local for the cast/crew and loved ones - nothing official. The night before the film is supposed to debut he gives me the finished sound file at 12:30am (I suppose it's the day of the premiere at this time!). So I put in the sound file and the sound is off, meaning I have to clean up his mistakes into the morning. Ugh, it was just a mess. I remained calm and positive, because I'm professional, but I wanted to shake him and say "why did you leave this so late?!" I had to set an alarm at 6am after going to bed around 1:30am-2:00am to check the export was going well and to upload the finished film to Dropbox so he could then use it for the premiere.
So now I feel TIRED. Even though I went back to bed after my 6am check I feel so drained and sleepy. I must have got around 5-6 hours sleep, but I think my body has been used to 8 hours so it's protesting. Really don't want to go on that run today, but at the same time, if I don't I'll break my habit cycle and I really don't want to do that. I'm so close to finishing my working out 3x a week for 4 weeks habit. I can do this! Perhaps the cold fresh air will wake me up a bit
I was 168.4 lbs this morning, my typical post-run gain/some late night M&M's to keep my energy up (not a valid excuse, I know). I'm sure it'll head back down again soon! I always use my lowest weight of the week for sanity purposes
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workinglikeadog - Thanks! I'm basically following a new plan that isn't so much of a diet/exercise plan, but more of a "let's change my life" plan. I wrote down a list of reasons why I'm overweight and then planned a way to break these bad habits slowly and turn them into good ones. I'm using an app called "Loop - Habit Tracker" to keep in check, but I'm basing my habits off the list I created. Here's a link to my blog where I list out my habits if you want to take a look. Now that I'm working on these habits as more of mini challenges before "promoting" them, it's really helped with my motivation. It's all good and grand to say "I'm going to eat healthy and exercise!" but if you've spent years not doing those things, or even taken a break from doing those things, it's hard to just jump into doing that. I'm all about easing myself into things gradually, pretty much tricking myself! I think the app has helped a lot though because it tracks the streaks in which you perform a habit, so for example if I don't exercise today and don't tick my little box it's going to break the streak and reset itself. I don't want to break that streak though so even though I'm tired I will go out on a run today to get that box checked and continue my streak! I hope this helps!
Wow, riestrella ~ what a wild schedule you have! I applaud you for all your hard work and your dedicated exercise program!
I like the "let's change my life" program plan...it is a practical and do-able way of life.
I currently am in the lead for our contest. Now, mind you, I had an advantage. I started Medifast on November 4, so obviously had a big loss the first week, so that put me at a fast pace out of the gate. Now losses are slower, of course. But needless to say, I am very mindful of following this program and Christmas will be here in two weeks! So the hard part is yet to come. This contest has helped immensely in staying on track and being accountable.
I am a binge eater. (I dropped out of the Halloween contest early on). But I am determined to take this one day at a time, one minute at a time and even one moment at a time. I am still in the "honeymoon" phase of this plan, so I am confident I can do this through the holidays. The hard part will be in January and February...when all the excitement dies down and winter monotony ensues. However, I am getting way ahead of myself...I am living today! And today I will be successful.
Reading everyone's challenges and successes has been inspiring. Thank you! It really keeps me going and accountable. As for me, having not gained in the last 6 weeks is an amazing feat. I have been on vacation in New Zealand and Fiji for 3 of them and in DC for work last week and this week. Crazy... I thank God for this challenge because it makes me think before eating, is driving me to make healthy food choices, and is keeping me exercising even while on the road.
I have been on this journey 6 months now and I believe the healthy decisions I am making are now a habit and becoming more natural. So, for others working for a healthier self, don't give up trying. For example, today I got off the Metro 2 stops early and lugged my bags to the hotel. And, tonight I did 2 miles hiking New Zealand on an elliptical.
NSV - people I work with who haven't seen me for a while - "I love your hair.". Ha ha. Same cut I have had for a decade! Something is different, they just don't know what.
. I'm all about habit changes, I'm doing pretty well at tracking them using the app I think I mentioned to you before. So far I've found the app really useful, I'm almost ready to step things up a notch! I think if the BF's mum doesn't decide we'll get her a Nordstrom gift card. That's the problem with that side of the family, they have expensive tastes. BF's sister (who I love, don't get me wrong) sent her Christmas present ideas and all of them were over $60. You're right, the size 11's are a great inspiration. They fit...just a little too snug. I put them on yesterday and I just didn't feel comfortable walking around in them. I bought a belt yesterday to go with my 13's too since I found they were falling down a little. Can't believe the huge size difference between the 11 and 13!
. She's extremely rude. They just tend to shut her down and then walk away from the situation without telling her why she shouldn't behave a certain way. 
That's a 2.2 lb drop from last week! So happy to be heading solidly into the 160's again! 
