Kayla when I was recovering from my cardiac incident in 2016 and I had to monitor my sodium, Panera were the worst offenders. I love them and the food is great, but you have to watch it. Whenever I order something from the app, you can customize, and if you do, you'll see that added salt is always checked, so you need to opt out of added salt. I always did that when ordering my sandwich and it brought the sodium down significantly! Also, the poppyseed dressing is low in sodium too...
Casey sometimes the cheat day will translate to a drop on the scale because the body has been holding on and when you take in the extra calories, it figures, "woot! I have enough food, don't need this anymore!!". Nice job on the continued losses!!
Martine I feel for you. Having lived in Canada most of my life, I know what February is like and how desperate it feels just to see concrete for a change!!! I hate snow, and don't miss it at all.
Curvy great news about your neighbors! Since you're in Northern CA, were you impacted by the fires in wine country last year or are you north of there? I realize you were not near the LA fires, know enough CA geography for that LOL.
Just a quick check-in for me as today is full with peer advisor interviews right up until 5 p.m. We do have a one hour lunch break for which I am grateful.
Laura: Thanks for your question. No, I live about an hour from Wine Country so thankfully the fires didn't come close. I did however have a student in my class this fall whose mother and father both lost their homes. Actually, all the colleges and universities in this area had students and staff (along with many others) who were impacted by the fires. It was such a devastating late summer and fall around here. My prayers for have been ongoing as you might imagine.
Weight: Second verse, same as the first...209 lbs.
Weigh-in was down a little to 194.2 today. I went about 175 calories past my range last night on purpose to see if I could up the numbers a bit and still lose, but I also ended up being low on water again, so I'm not sure if I'm just a little dehydrated or if my body is liking the adjustment just yet. I'm going to make it a point to get in my full gallon of water today to see if I bounce back up tomorrow when I'm properly hydrated. I will keep my cals at the top of my range today, as well, just to stay consistent to see if the water goal effects anything. Other than that, I got in a good walk last night, but was hit with some unexpected wind chill coming off the mountain once I got out of our neighborhood...definitely going to bundle up a bit more this evening, because I was so cold I was numb by the time I got back last night, lol.
(I really shouldn't complain though, since at least I'm not dealing with snow and negative temps like some people are right now! I just don't handle the cold very well anymore after living in the South for 5 years! )
Week Three
15: 196.6
16: 195.6 - TOM.
17: 196.0 - TOM.
18: 195.0 - TOM.
19: 195.0 - TOM.
20: 194.2 - TOM.
21:
---------------------------- End of Week Two: 196.6 Total Loss for Week Three:
opheliaphoenix cold is always relative. Right now temperatures are just above the freezing point here and you'd think it was warm enough to go out in a t-shirt, compared to the insanely cold temperatures back in December/January. Well anything feels downright warm after those freezing temps to be honest. It will be interesting to see if keeping your calories a bit on the high side will have a continued positive effect, combined with increased water intake.
curvynotlumpy hope the interviews went well. Still, a full day of interviews can wear someone down a bit. Mental fatigue is real. I'm intrigued by "Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri", I'll definitely rent it at some point.
Laura the Outer Banks trip sounds dreamy and so relaxing. Swimming sure burns a lot of calories. And that's a great type of exercise for someone with a knee injury. I know my physiotherapist kept wanting me to go swimming when I was getting treated for my Achilles tendon, so that I would stay off my foot. 5 hours of meal prep is mighty impressive. With my return to work next week, I know that's something that I have to think about soon. Continued renewed success on your DietBet.
RunningRedHead been there, done that, re: ordering out even though I prepared food. And where I work there are tons of restaurants too. One of my colleagues eats every single meal at a restaurant when he's working. I don't know how he does it. What kind of back exercises/stretches are you doing? Hope they provide some relief.
It's been a relatively slow-moving day for me. I had a horrible night's sleep, kept tossing and turning and waking up and feeling too warm, then too cold and never comfortable enough to get restful sleep. It's been grey and raining all day too (better than snow!), so that didn't help energize me much. I finally convinced myself to exercise around 4pm after a 20-minute nap. It was worth it (the exercise AND the nap).
18: 37 minutes HIIT workout
19: 50 minutes upper body weight training
20: 37 minutes cardio workout
RunningRedHead- Rock climbing is my pipe-dream goal, but the dancing lessons sound good too; we could certainly use professional help What particular kind of dance? Good luck with the back thing. It's a product of a conventional life, I guess- so much sitting, standing, computering, not as much whole body movement. I'm also doing a lot of back stretches and exercises as a preventative measure.
Curvynotlumpy- OMG, updates! They will be the death of me- or at least my productivity. Cheese pie is a Swiss specialty. It's like a very cheesy quiche. It's also like a massive calorie bomb to the thighs.
Opheliaphoenix- glad the scale has decided to do the decent thing. Hope it continues. I know sometimes it's just not as practical, but I do find walking out of doors a much better stress reliever so I'm glad you managed to get out for a walk. I can't believe you got away with all that popcorn! I do think we need a day like that once in a while, just so our bodies know there's not a famine
Laura- Yay for holiday on the outer banks! I love it there! Apropos holidays and periods; I had a spiral that all but obliterated my periods, yet, two years in a row the only periods I got were on holiday- one of them a slow drip that lasted the entire time. Hope you get it sorted, and the knee!
futurehealthyme, all the best to you too. A diet bet can be a great motivator. Here's a dancing carrot to cheer you on!
Martine- Switzerland is a very safe place, especially my little town. There was one murder, about 10 years ago, and that was an isolated incident involving a man who should have been in a secure mental health facility. To my knowledge, there has never been a rape. I get the streets all to myself, except for the occaisional hedgehog, fox or cat. Anyway, I often can't sleep due to stress and I'm making a commitment to deal with it in ways other than eating. So far, so good! I'm sorry you're struggling. What's derailing you? Any clues? Sometimes the source of the stress is clear but that stealth stress is so hard to deal with. I've busted so many shovels trying to dig that stuff up.
Just saw your most recent posting- sounds like you're back on track!
I'm still plodding a long. Weigh-in is a bit off, partly because I was 111.9 on Sunday morning, and am now 112.3 again for no real reason, other than maybe the fact that I did get two strength trainings in this week (yay!) so it might be water retention from that? Anyway, here it is in pounds. It looks as if I haven't lost anything, but that's just the conversion. I acutally lost 300g, so, a little more than half a pound? Walking and eating is on track.
2018:
Jan 1: 264
Jan 8: 260
Jan 15: 258
Jan 22: 256
Jan 29: 254
Feb 8: 251
Feb 14: 248
Feb 21: 248
Last edited by Magicsusan; 02-21-2018 at 02:53 AM.
Reason: can't spell worth beans.
Super disappointed.
I always always self-sabotage.
I'm so desperate that I've even googled surgery (!) and gastric balloons. No judgement if you have done that it's just that I never thought I'd even consider something like that.
I've gained 8 lbs and now weigh 221 lbs. Nothing to do but to get back on the horse.
FutureVagabond I'm sending you so that you find your way back to healthy habits soon That gain is just a temporary set-back, as we've all encountered from time to time. It's important to find out why it's happening to try and find a way to not repeat the pattern. Any ideas why you think you are self sabotaging? For me it's letting work get in the way instead of chosing my own health first. I let stress get to me and stop trying. But as you said, I always get back on the horse and that's what matters most during those times.
I think it's that I experience mild success e.g. lose 10-15 lbs or so and then I think I can take a day 'off' which turns into several days at which point I've gained back 3-5 lbs and feel dejected so throw it all in the air and regain the remaining lbs. Story of my life (literally).
I think suddenly going to 1200 calories was difficult so I'm starting on 1600 calories per day and will work my way down.
Martine: You are so right! I was exhausted after our sixth and last interview for the day. I actually enjoy the interview process because it's an opportunity to meet students up close and hear more about their individual experiences and talents. I hope you had a better nights last night.
Sending you a big FutureVagabond to go along with Martine's will power dust. I couldn't agree more with her supportive words. I do think you might be on to something in re-evaluating your calorie intake; 1,200 seems very low but 1,600 more reasonable. It might also be worth seeing what those 1,600 calories look like in your diet. Are you getting enough macronutrients--protein, good carbs and good fats to sustain you? Yes, we've all been where you are before. Know that you have friends and lots of support here.
opheliaphoenix: and heat are absolutely relative when you move from one climate to the next. I find that one just gets used to where you are and adjusts the whining to fit the environment.
Magicsusan: Switzerland sounds wonderful especially where you live and the empty streets. Now that I'm re-losing weight I pay far too much attention to how I might appear to others when I exercise outside. Such a waste of energy. Great job on getting two workouts in this week
*****************************
No way around it, I'm paying for this abbreviated week (Monday off) with meetings and appointments through late afternoon Friday. I'm feel like a dog chasing her tail and a wee bit
Martine: My mom told me the same thing about their time living in Alaska before they had kids...it was usually cold enough up there that, when she was a waitress at a cafe, she could toss out a hot cup of coffee into the air out the back door, and it would be frozen before it hit the snow ...so, any time it was even a few degrees above the freezing point, people would be out in shorts and tanktops because they were acclimated to much colder temps! (They were always warned to still dress for the weather, even if it felt nice to them.) I can't imagine living in those temps, but I guess the body has its ways to adapt to it, if needed. Hope you got better sleep last night, btw!
Magicsusan: I know, I definitely got lucky! That much sodium usually has me bloated for at least a day or two...even three sometimes. And, I definitely get water retention in my muscles when I do strength training, especially if there is any lingering soreness come weigh-day, so I'd bet you're right that that's what you're seeing on the scale.
FutureVagabond: Posting today is a great first step to taking back that accountability and getting back on track. I fell off the wagon and gained almost 30 pounds, just over the summer alone. It was a slap in the face to see that gain when I decided to finally get back on track, but I am so, so glad I did...you can do this!
Curvy: Oh no! Hope you can push through the rest of the week with some sanity left at the end...sounds like you will have more than earned the right to relax as much as possible by the time the weekend comes around!
Weigh-in was 194.0 today, which means I lost 2.6 lbs for Week Three. Since we are now going into the final week of February, I know that - unless some major whooshing happens between now and then - I will definitely not be hitting my goal for the month, because I still have almost 5 lbs left. That being said, I am thankful that TOM was kind to me this week...it could have been a lot worse! I'm going to do my best going into our final week to make as much progress as possible and am wishing everyone a strong week this coming week, as well!
Week Three
15: 196.6
16: 195.6 - TOM.
17: 196.0 - TOM.
18: 195.0 - TOM.
19: 195.0 - TOM.
20: 194.2 - TOM.
21: 194.0 - TOM.
---------------------------- End of Week Two: 196.6 Total Loss for Week Three:2.6 lbs.
curvynotlumpy at "adjusting the whining to fit the environment".
MagicSusan I've thought about exercising when I wake up in the middle of the night, but I like my bed more at that time, even if it takes me forever to fall back asleep. And yes strength training can affect your current weight, but in the long run it will help boost your metabolism to lose weight, so it's a temporary situation.
Another rainy day but overall an ok day. We went shopping this morning for a new coffee table. We went to IKEA and a couple of other furniture stores. I took pictures and a decision will be made soon. We also bought new drapes to cover the area where our washer/dryer are, but those will have to be hemmed, and not by me. I just completed a lower-body workout with weights. I think I'm going to feel this one tomorrow. I don't know why but when I exercise my upper body, even when using heavier weights, I rarely feel sore the next day, but my lower body sure lets me know it's not happy.
Hope everyone is having a good middle-of-the-week!
18: 37 minutes HIIT workout
19: 50 minutes upper body weight training
20: 37 minutes cardio workout
21: 40 minutes lower body strength training
magicsusan: I would love to do a beginner ballet (for grown-ups ) and maybe some ballroom classes.. I’m not entirely sure yet, but definitely the ballet class Way to go getting your walks and strength exercises in!
Laura: Wow! Thanks for the tip, I never realized that salt & pepper was checked. Those sneaky Panera people!
Martine: I definitely should not be ordering out (calorie/nutrition-wise, and for financial reasons ). I found this list of exercises (https://www.beachbodyondemand.com/bl...ower-back-pain), it seems to be helping a little bit. I overdid it with the housework yesterday though. Glad to hear you’re able to get your exercise in
Casey: You’re right! “The bloating powers-that-be” have been very kind Good luck this final week. for a woosh!
FutureVagabond: I agree with curvy and Martine. Sending an extra Sorry to hear you’re in the middle of a vicious cycle. On a positive note, you recognize it and you’re here chatting with people who can empathize and maybe even relate to what you’re going through. You can do this!
I feel like I’ve been eating out a lot lately. I think I’m just being hard on myself, but I could definitely stand to eat out less. I was Googling, Instagramming and Facebooking when I couldn’t sleep last night and came across an interview with Lexi (@fatgirlfedup) about what started her weight loss journey and read that it was a challenge/bet issued from one of her friends challenging her and her husband to cook all meals at home and exercise 4-5 days per week. I’ve been noodling around with that for a bit this morning and I think I’m going to try and challenge myself to do this for March (starting now, but truly committing to it for March). I can’t believe February is almost over!
It has been unseasonably warm here the last two days (55 degrees on Tuesday and almost 70 degrees yesterday), so I’ve been taking advantage of that and taking the pup for a walk. I’m planning on walking the pup again today, although it’s going to be quite a bit colder out today (in the 30s) plus it’s supposed to snow. I hope everyone has a great day!!
Kayla I had been reading stuff from Lexi too, and the other component was not to eat out for 30 days. I would bet she saw a huge change doing that! It takes a lot of gumption to stick to that though and she is the embodiment of that!! I think of her every time I drag myself to the gym at 5am.
Tomorrow is weigh in day for me. It's been a good week as I've tried to get exercise in daily. Tuesday morning and this morning I woke before 5am so I just got up and went to the gym. Great to front load your day with 3000 steps before breakfast!! On days like today, it's even better because I've been on back-to-back calls since getting in at 8 so getting steps in has taken a back seat. Been sticking to my low-sodium, unprocessed diet all week. Hoping for some results on the scale!
Thank you all or the support! I love hearing about how you are all doing. What methods are you all using to lose weight? How many calories do you aim for per day?
Reading about the workouts you do inspired me to get off my behind and I walked for 3 miles! Doesn't sound like much maybe but it's a big deal for me haha!
Started my day with an 8 a.m. meeting with my group with whom I've been revising our spring training course for our peers. All went well and our Executive Director and another supervisor was very impressed. Another thing checked off my list for today and the week.
RunningRedHead: I think your idea about not eating out in March is stellar! I do like a great meal out and can attest that I've fallen into the trap of fast food eating, but more and more I realize that one of the things I can control is the food and quality going into my body. Before it was just satisfying the hunger; now it's more about self-care and nourishment and providing my body what it needs to work at its best. I'm the first to admit that I'm not perfect and fall off the rails, but changing my mindset about food has helped a bunch. As you can see from my daily check-ins I haven't lost a lot of weight but I have managed to maintain and this keeps my mind at peace even though the scale isn't moving. Thank you for your comment as it has made me think about a personal challenge of my own for March.
Martine: Ikea! I'm looking for a different dining room table and have a couple of options that I'm considering as well. Which Ikea coffee table are you considering?
opheliaphoenix: I definitely think you'll be able to take some weight off before now and the end of the month. Gads, did I really just write "end of the month?" Already??!!
FutureVagabond: I do mostly low carb, high protein with some intermittent fasting.
No, I live about an hour from Wine Country so thankfully the fires didn't come close. I did however have a student in my class this fall whose mother and father both lost their homes. Actually, all the colleges and universities in this area had students and staff (along with many others) who were impacted by the fires. It was such a devastating late summer and fall around here. My prayers for 
have been ongoing as you might imagine. 
Hope you get it sorted, and the knee!
so that you find your way back to healthy habits soon 
last night. 
workouts in this week 
Way to go getting your walks and strength exercises in! 
). I found this list of exercises (
for a woosh!
I do like a great meal out and can attest that I've fallen into the trap of fast food eating, 
but more and more I realize that one of the things I can control is the food and quality going into my body. Before it was just satisfying the hunger; now it's more about self-care and nourishment and providing my body what it needs to work at its best. I'm the first to admit that I'm not perfect and fall off the rails, but changing my mindset about food has helped a bunch. As you can see from my daily check-ins I haven't lost a lot of weight but I have managed to maintain and this keeps my mind at peace even though the scale isn't moving. Thank you for your comment as it has made me think about a personal challenge of my own for March. 
Ikea! I'm looking for a different dining room table and have a couple of options that I'm considering as well. Which Ikea coffee table are you considering?
Gads, did I really just write "end of the month?" Already??!! 
Laura! 