[mandible]

It just sucks to workout everyday and eat all those fruits and veggies only to step on the scale and find that you've gained weight. It makes me so depressed I want to binge. I wanted to go to the store yesterday and buy a bag of Oreos and eat the whole thing. I didn't. I had a little chocolate instead. I thought I was pretty good considering AF is here.

I was going to skip the gym today to give myself a little break. But then I stepped on the scale. I guess I'll go.

I have to go grocery shopping, too. We have nothing in the house. I don't even have anything to fill up on before going to the store to keep me from impulse shopping. Lord, grant me the strength to avoid the Oreo aisle.

[srmb60]

Oh Mandy AF is enough to make most of us feel depressed and gain weight!

Be good, go to the gym, buy a new vegetable and come back here often today. Tell us how strong you are being ... regardless of the hormonal glitch

[Heather]

Mandi, the scale is just not the best measure of how you're doing. Remember the scale measures ALL of you -- it doesn't distinguish between fat, muscle, water, bone, etc.

For many of us AF means water retention! So it's very possible you've lost a little fat and gained a little water but the scale doesn't show it.

Just keep on track. Try to find other ways to measure your progress (how clothing fits, or measurements for example!). Good luck!

[Cheryl14]

Hi Mandy!

I've been reading You On A Diet by Drs. Roizen and Oz and found a very interesting page. Here's what it says about Mood Foods: If you reach for:

TOUGH FOODS (meat, hard or crunchy foods)- You may be feeling ANGRY

SUGARY FOODS - DEPRESSED

SOFT AND SWEET FOODS (ice cream)- ANXIOUS

SALTY FOODS- STRESSED

BULKY FILL-YOU-UP FOODS (crackers, pasta)- LONELY, SEXUALLY
FRUSTRATED

ANYTHING AND EVERYTHING- JEALOUS



I found this to be very interesting!

Exercise can be a wonderful mood regularor. Chemically you are different AFTER your exercise because your body releases endorphins. Endorphins help us to feel energetic and happy and positive. Exercise TO IMPROVE your mood. I bet you'll have more strength to ignore the Oreo aisle, too!

Cheryl

[HadEnough]

Well, now I know what I eat so many crackers!

[problysewin]

Mandible-

The fruits and veggies are so good for you and the exercise too. Way better than the oreo's. I totally agree with what everyone has said about AF.

Just keep up the hard work and I know you'll see progress soon. Are there any non-scale areas your seing improvement in? Energy better? Less cravings? Maybe there is something other than the scale you could focus on. Like an article of clothing you want to fit into. Especially since you work out, you may lose inches faster than pounds.

Good luck, keep coming back. This place is helping me tremendously!

[onmyown]

I have just started and thought this was going to fall off in the beginning and I too was so perfect yesterday and I was up a pound on the scale. I know that it's going to come off. I just was hoping that I wasn't really gaining 'weight' and maybe just water. After reading this post I'm feeling much better. So when you all are talking to one person you are probably talking to many! Thanks AGAIN....
Today I'm going to keep doing what i'm doing and I'm sure that it's going to come off. How could it not?

Tina

[Vega Botain]

It happened to me this week also, gained a pound after a week of healthy food and excercise, still when I measured myself I found I lost 1 cm in my waist and thigh so not everything is lost, listen to everybody's advice, it really helped me not to get angry and go buy candy to calm me down.

I was having lots of stress and anxiety a year ago and I tried meditating for 30 mins before going to bed. I put a nice calm music on, and just sit in a confortable position and let my mind go blank and not think of all the troubles I was having, you can also do stretches while you are at it if you have trouble not thinking about stuff, you feel better afterwards and is easier to have a good night sleep, and a better morning.

[QuilterInVA]

The scale should be used no more than once a week because your body weight fluctuates from day to day and even time of day. The only thing you gain by daily weighing is frustration.

You want to replace fat with muscle, that's why we exercise. Exercise in and of itself will not result in much weight loss. Muscle takes more calories for maintenance than fat so we can eat more!

A pound of muscle takes up less room on the body than a pound of fat, so the scale may not move but the body has lost inches and that is a great thing!

The only thing you gain by eating Oreos is a load of guilt.

[mandible]

I went to the gym, but the aerobics class I wanted to do was canceled. I did thirty minutes on the elliptical trainer followed by crunches. Not as intense as the classes I've been doing, but better than nothing. And much nicer on my knees. I didn't shower when I got home. I know it's gross, but I find that a shower is the best (or should I say worst) excuse for not exercising. Anyway, now that Toot's napping, I'm going to get on the BowFlex.

The big challenge will be Sam's. Damn those free samples. Maybe I should just consider that lunch.

[PinkyPie]

Mandi, I'm glad you went to the gym and worked out even though your class was cancelled! Way to go!!

Something I told my boyfriend last night: I've decided the SCALE is absolutely NOT the be all and end all of my journey. There are other things that are more important:

1) How you feel in your clothes
2) How you feel physically (more energy? less tired? better sleep?)
3) Keeping my committment to exercise
4) Eating food that feed my BODY not my emotions (ie, food with high nutritional value)

AFTER all that, is the scale. The scale can't tell you "GOOD JOB" as much as you want it to, but YOU can tell yourself that just by all of the other things you are doing for yourself!

Yes, we all want to see the scale go down, but unless we are doing all of the other things AND giving ourself HUGE pats on the back for it, it really doesn't matter what the scale says. We WILL reach our goal when our bodies are good and ready... remember that the weight didn't come on overnight, it's not coming off overnight either!

I have the feeling that my body says "OHhhhhh no you don't!" when I start exercising and eating right and holds on to weight for a wee bit longer, just to spite me!

Hang in there, think of ALL of the good things you are doing... the scale WILL move eventually!

[Angihas2]

I found when I intentionally started trying to lose weight, not just be healthier, it took forever for that ^%$%^ scale to budge. The body is comfortable where it's at, it may not be perfect here, but it knows what it's doing. No suprises. Eating healthier foods, forcing movement, causing weight loss, is all unknown things, and lets face it, who's not scared of the unknown? It sometimes takes a huge shove to get the ball rolling, but once your body is assured that we arent in a famine, that food will be forthcoming, it will gradually begin to shed those extra pounds. Just keep feeding it healthy foods, every 3-4 hours, giving it some extra movement and fluids and it'll happen. Focus right now, on just one step at a time, one work out at a time, one healthy meal or snack at a time, instead of the scale. I also find for me, if I work out THEN go grocery shopping, those feel good, doing great endorphins carry me right past the bread/chips/pastry etc aisles, because I still feel so danged good after working out, I don't want to blow it on anything, so I stick to healthy foods.