Mannnnn, I have officially hit my first plateau week...how frustrating are these?!?!?
I am doing everything the same...possibly more intensely and yet not losing anything...so frustrating. I KNOW I just have to keep at it and eventually the scale will go down again, but it's hard in the interim.
I went boxing again today, though! SOOOOO fun! SO MUCH SWEAT, hahahah!

You know what's funny? I was just thinking that I wish I'd lost enough weight to get new summer clothes (it'll be 30 lbs before that happens, though), and I remembered something from the one time I got down to a normal weight in the 140s.

When I was in the 140s, I got compliments on my clothing style and how I dressed. People said I looked trendy and put-together. The thing was, the clothes were identical to what I wore when I was larger. Some of them were the SAME clothing pieces. When I was bigger, no one complimented my style like that.

Being smaller gives you kind of an increased baseline 'pretty' factor, I think. :/

I AGREE! I actually just experienced that. I wore something out that I've worn before, and this time I got SO many comment about how beautiful I looked...I never got that when I wore the shirt when I was heavier. It's really kind of unfortunate, but I agree that the thinner I get, the more noticeable I seem to be...especially in the "pretty" department.

So all last week was a complete and TOTAL FAIL for me. I'm not sure what happened actually. . . Last monday I took finals but since I was so busy over the weekend studying I didn't prep any meals for the week. So I ate out a lot and it was pretty bad. I weighed in at the last minute on Sunday. . . and I was UP 11 lbs ! I couldn't believe it! Some of it must have been water weight from all the sodium I had been consuming, because it's actually coming off rather quickly, and I'm almost back down to where I was last week. Hubby and I have decided to try the Whole30/Paleo diet. This has been our first week and so for it hasn't been bad. He's going through major sugar withdrawals though and I'm finding it difficult to come up with meal ideas that will be quick and not put me in the kitchen all day.

Im ready to be sizzling for summer!

Hey guys I'm on my phone so personals to come! I'm so frustrated right now...I'm working out loads and eating the right amount of calories but I'm not losing any weight!! TOM is gone and I'm drinking water but I'm not budging on the scale! I'm getting really fed up now. I'm overweight and no where near my goal so I should be losing weight. Hate this!

Riestrella - Could it be sodium? I'm not sure how the UK is, but in the US there is sodium hidden in pretty much everything. I've found in the past that if my sodium intake is too high, I hold on to so much water that the scale appears not to budge even if everything else is on plan.

Hey all. Last week was a bit of a bust (and I just now remembered to post my weigh in, a slight "gain"). I wasn't able to follow my usual plan the whole week, but I was putting friends and family first, and that's fine with me.

I've been really on point with exercise lately, and I'm noticing huge improvements in my speed with running which is awesome! I think someone asked about my 5K time - it was 32 min! I'm very proud of that, but now I think I will work on getting under 30 min.

I went to the beach last week and got to wear my bikini. I thought it would be too cold to go into the water, so I wasn't thinking I would be wearing it in public (I had a dress on top of it most of the day) but it ended up being a beautiful day. I'm surprised how easy it was to strut around in so little clothing and not care what anyone thought. Fun fact: bikini tops dry out much faster than tankinis lol

Job interviews are going well but the process is taking a long time. There's one job I'm REALLY interested in and I should have my third interview (Skyping with the whole team!) next week.

Ries - I'm sorry you're so frustrated right now!!! You're going through a lot of stress with the move and new foods. Just keep trucking. It sounds like you're doing all the right things. The scale can be a royal b*tch sometimes. Maybe give it a couple more weeks of doing what you're doing now before making any more changes? *hugs*

kailpea - Yay for finals being done and getting back on track! I'm sure you're glad those 11 pounds are almost all gone already. There must be some good resources either on this board or elsewhere on the internet for easier meal ideas? Good luck and let us know how it goes!

Penny - That is a really odd observation! I wonder why people said that? :/

GUYS I'm out of the 140's! (well, just barely) weighed in at 139.5 this morning! Thanks for all the motivation on this thread, it's great having a positive support network with all you wonderful people.

Did Zumba today (which proved to be more difficult after doing LesMills GRIT (HIIT) yesterday. Not quite ready for that, felt nearly sick afterward)

Good luck! I wish all of you the power to resist temptation on this lovely Memorial Day weekend (for those who are in the US).

EDIT** I've also come to realize how important water is. I feel like I've been such a fool, honestly! I've been trying to drink between 80-100 oz of water a day, and in the last three days my skin has vastly improved and I feel so much better. Am I the only one who feels like they made this realization too late?

Hi everyone!! I, too, had a rough week. Pretty sure I will have gained by my Sunday weigh in.

There's some stress in my life; I have officially been unemployed for 2 months with no job prospects in sight and my graduation date is fast approaching. In January, I told myself that I'd lose enough weight to fit into a dress I made for school (fashion student) by graduation (June 8th). Needless to say, that is clearly not going to happen. So, now I have to take myself shopping for a dress that I won't feel confident in using money I don't have lol It's just bumming me out! But I'm so happy and blessed to be graduating at all. I really need to focus on that and not my appearance.

When I get really down about my weight like that, I seem to revert back to an unhealthy lifestyle and I just make it worse?! Does anyone else do that? It's so bizarre. Hopefully making this post will help me realize that I need to turn this around.

Reistrella - I hate it, HATE IT, when that happens. No idea how to fix it, though. If you figure it out, let us know!
Also, Atmos has a point - even if you don't add salt to anything, in the USA you could still be taking in gobs too much salt, easy.

NNS - no idea. But I also have relatives who are nicer to me when I'm smaller. :/
Good luck with your job interviews! Sounds like you're doing well!

charbreaker - I'm so jealous! Congrats! (And yes, water is super important).

sydneymarisa - I revert like that, too. I'm trying to break that habit. I think it's because it's harder to put mental energy into eating well and dealing with mental stress. It's like trying to go do an intensive workout after spending all day rearranging heavy furniture or something - you're taxed.

Week 4 Charts everyone! Can't believe we're a month in!

Hey everyone!

Sorry for my moaning post...I was having a bit of a moment. I kept going with healthier eating and watching the sodium intake, good shout atmos!(I don't think I'll ever be perfect with my food though) and I also had a couple of days rest before the Bolder Boulder 10K (BB 10K) and my weight went down to 162 lbs! That was a 3 lbs drop in a week since I was seeing 165 lbs for a few days earlier last week. This has happened before too, I've been doing so well with exercise but when I take a few days off my weight shoots down.

Today I did the BB 10K and it was awesome! The atmosphere was incredible. I wore a Union Jack flag as a cape to represent my home country . It was quite the conversation starter! People asked me if I was from the UK and when I said yes they thought it was amazing. It was so funny though, a couple of guys dressed up as some old timey president (sorry Americans, I don't know which one!!) came up to me and said "What is this?! What is this English flag?? You traitor!!" Lots of people cheering on the side lines would say "yeah, Great Britain!!" I did it with my boyfriends sister and she was a great motivator. She's suuuper fit though, she was talking most the way around like it was just a typical run for her! I felt so guilty not being able to chat, I was really struggling at points. The course is pretty darn tough, there's a lot of hills and I wasn't really "ready" for a 10K since my training still has about 5 weeks to go; but I couldn't miss out on this 10K!

It was my slowest time yet at 1:12:47, but I had so much fun that it didn't really matter to me so I'm not disappointed. It was pretty epic running into a football stadium at the end!! But man, there was a really steep hill just before it that almost killed me!! Here's a pic:


I did have a Good Times epic burger afterwards, as is tradition when I race!! But I ran so much that I actually had the calorie allowance for it!! Win friggin' win. My knee is a bit effed but I think I'll stay off it for a day or two, ice it, then begin training again in a couple of days.

----------------------------

atmos - Yeah, I've been making sure to check the contents/nutrition of everything now. Thanks for your advice, it did help!

NNS - That's an awesome 5K time!! Congrats!! I'm always aiming to do a 10 min/mi, so 30 minutes for a 5K is my goal too. Good luck with your interview, what job is it? Thanks for your consideration, I'm glad the scale began co-operating or I would be tearing out my hair! *hug*

Penny - Hmm, it's an interesting point you make. Healthier is sexier it seems, but I do think overweight girls can be stylish too. I knew a girl in College who was obese, but she dressed so nicely so I always complimented her. I wonder if I'll notice this too when I get down nearer to my goal. Well, I guess to get out of the stall was to drink only water, cut out sugar/sodium as much as possible and take a couple days off from exercise. Hope this helps you in the future!

Sorry for any typos, I'm pretty tired!!

NoNameSlob - I'm glad you had such a great time at the beach! Good luck with your interviews.

Charbreaker - Congrats on the new set of numbers! I hope to join you someday. I swore I'd never be in the 140s again and here I am, rather stuck.

Riestrella - I'm glad you had a wonderful time! Even though it went a bit slow I think it's great you were able to run hills and all that at altitude. I hid down in Denver on Monday until people started leaving Boulder. Glad the weather cleared up for it.

I've been struggling a bit with the lack of sun blah's and finding my motivation. There are so many things I want to do, but when it comes down to doing them I'm not always willing to put in the work! I'm trying to refocus with keeping up with dance, some cross training, and not binge eating. So my weight may not cooperate with this challenge as I'm no longer counting calories at the moment. I'm worried trying to take on too much at once so nothing sticks.

My new goals are not binge eating and practicing dance each day I don't have class. I'll keep doing C25K as I can manage. Lifting and calorie counting will have to sit on the back burner for a bit.

charbreaker - Great job!!! Yay for hitting the 130s!

sydneymarisa - How did your weigh in go? You are not alone in how you're feeling at all. I know its stressful to be graduating and not have a job lined up, but first of all CONGRATULATIONS on finishing your degree! That is a huge accomplishment and one that you should focus on right now. It's a stressful time and you should be forgiving of yourself, but I know you know that it's also not an excuse to give up on your health, too. Once you get back into a routine you will feel so much better physically and emotionally. Best of luck to you in your job search.

Ries - Wow, the Boulder Bolder sounds like it was a ton of fun! It's so RUDE for them to put hills at the end of the race :P But man, good for you for finishing and enjoying yourself. You look great and it sounds like the scale is finally showing you that the hard work is worth it!

atmos - Sucks that its been raining so much there, though I'm sure yall need it! When did you start C25K? Your current goals sound like a great balance.

I've just been in a cycle of maintaining for the last few months. Occasionally I hit a new low but then I keep bouncing around 177-181. My boyfriend is having the same issue. We're both kicking up the activity a bit to see if that helps shift things. I think I'd be content maintaining a bit longer, but he's ready to go down so I might as well join him! Job stuff was kind of on hold for the holiday weekend so hopefully I'll hear back about follow up interviews this week.