300+ and Getting Fit after 40 #224
 

Morning!

Scale didn't budge again. I will take my own advice and not sweat it, but it is very hard to do that!! I haven't been perfect, but feel I've been good enough to lose a little in that time! I think I really should get a new scale, but for lots of reasons am resisting.

Yesterday was okay. I didn't end up going out to dinner, but did snack extra at night. This week's goal is to figure out a way around this.

Good morning!
Just finished my ratatouille breakfast and am heading into the lake to collect plant samples to send to the Univ. of Conn. (we're having a native milfoil DNA tested to see if it has hybridized). I have a doctor's appt. in late morning, then off to school to work w/a couple of students, then TOPS meeting at 5:30, so basically a full day. I need to go root around in the fridge, figure out what I'm eating today, and pack my little cooler

Hope everyone has a wonderful day! Keep going!
Tippers in Maine

I had a good loss this week of 4lbs. I was hoping for more just because its my 1st week back at it hard. I guess if I done better over the weekend I might have lost more. I have decided I am going back to my weigh day being on sat and eating off one meal on sat. I think that is the only way I can do it along with my hubby. I promised him if he does good Sunday - friday that he can have treat meal on sat at noon. It will kinda give us both something to look foward too.I suspect it will even be a date meal most of the time.

My goals for this week are to get daily exercise in some form. I also plan on getting back to my full gallon of water per day. I can already tell my energy is increasing!
Lets try and have an OP week.

Heather, I'm with you, in the "not sweating it" department...another sleepless night for me, no loss to report, and new insights into my eating impulses (read about it on my blog, if you like).

I spent Sunday with my sons on a drive through the country side in the California Delta region. Lots of beautiful wetlands, historic little towns, fruit trees, corn and rice fields. It was nice to get out of the house and it was nice to laugh, play the music loud and argue over who was in charge of the radio.

So, new day, new week...I have an appointment with my doctor on Tuesday afternoon. Since last week I feel much better. I started taking my vitamins again. I still feel achy all over, but the lethargy seems to be not so bad now. It's not completely debilitating. And I'm not so freaked out about it any longer. We'll find the solution, eventually.

Have a great day, everyone!

I'm having a pity party this evening, so pissed off because when I weighed in at Tops tonight I'd only lost 1/10th of a pound for the week! The thing is, I did EVERYTHING right this week. I watched portions, I ate NO sugar or processed carbs, I swam every day, I stayed away from salt. I'm trying to just breathe and relax, knowing that I'm probably holding water or it's my shows up when it wants to TOM. I just feel so discouraged. Yes, Heather, I know, I know... pay no attention to the evil scale! I do FEEL good--and I feel smaller, and I swear my clothes are looser, so I'm just going to keep doing what I'm doing.

I actually had a little freak-out at my TOPS meeting tonight (not over the scale, but I think that disappointment contributed). Our group leader is an idiot and a jerk--without getting into every detail, I can just summarize that for the 90 minutes of torture that is our meeting, he thinks he's on "The Dave Show." Long story short, I shrieked at him for his ridiculous waste of our time and poor leadership, then I walked out (and won't go back) and cried the whole way home. For the past seven weeks, I've been going with the attitude of "oh well--I like the other group members, it's close to home, and I like the accountability aspect of a weekly weigh in, so I'm willing to put up with the leader who should be ousted" but tonight I'd had enough. Next week I'll find a new group. Sadly, the group's total weight loss for the year (since January) is 30 pounds, almost 14 of which is mine, and 15 of which is my neighbor's who joined with me seven weeks ago.

I'm too important and the time I'm dedicating to my weight management and health is too valuable to waste!

Okay, done venting! Tomorrow will be a better day, and I'm not going to let this one de-rail me. If I stay on program, I WILL see results.
Tippers in Maine

Tippers -- This IS the place to vent!! Stupid leader and :devil: scale!!

I could rant too -- what I didn't say earlier is that the scale has not moved for a month!! I haven't been perfect, but I've been doing this a long time and have a very good sense of how much to eat and move to lose weight. All my estimates suggest I should be moving down 1/2 pound a week or more. And yet...zip zilch nada.

Maybe I'm doing something wrong or my body has changed. But I'm not giving up!!

Georgia, I loved your blog entry today. Instead of "Impulse," try on the term "Compulsion." Maybe Heather can help out here, but I've been reading a bit on Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (and watching the new reality show "Obsession") and realizing that I COMPULSE over food. I actually googled "Compulsive Eating Disorder" the other day and recognize all of the symptoms. I'm not really a regular binge eater, but I compulse about food all the time, and anything can set me off. I can smell something, see an ad on t.v., or, like you, cook a potato salad, and then I can't control my eating behavior. It has nothing to do with hunger. And that leftover potato salad will "call" to me from the fridge until it's gone.

In OCD, the compulsions are a response to anxiety (brought on by? fear? depression? anger? any kind of strong emotion?)--somehow pulling out hair or picking at your face or engaging in counting are all rituals that the mind uses to "escape" from the anxiety. I think eating is my ritual, and especially eating something that has sugar and fat in it, something that will trigger some pleasure centers. I actually made an appointment with a therapist who specializes in eating disorders and am going to discuss this with her (my first appointment is in two weeks).
Tippers in Maine

Thank you, Heather!

Tell you what... you don't give up and I won't give up either!

Tippers

OK Heather - are you weighing, measuring and recording each bite? Getting your water? I know you are getting lots of exercise - getting enough sleep?

Hmmm - I think I just asked you all the questions you usually ask us when we are struggling. Hang tough!

Tippers -- My kind of psychology is far removed from abnormal psych, but I know a teeny tiny bit about OCD. Obsessions refer to thoughts that won't stop -- so you obsess about food -- and Compulsions refer to behaviors that people engage in to reduce anxiety.

But I think lots of us engage in binge eating that's not a result of anxiety... certain foods DO trigger the pleasure center of our brains, and so for some, we turn to the food as a way to feel good, but not to reduce anxiety.

Good luck figuring out what's going on!!

Thanks, Carol!!

I am recording everything!! And getting exercise and sleep! I've never paid attention to water.

It is possible that what I think should create a calorie deficit no longer does -- maybe I need to simply cut calories! But if I'm only creating a deficit of 1/2 pound a week then lots of other things could also be getting in the way. There may be a WHOOSH coming soon!

I usually do well during the day, but then I get weak in the evening and eat an extra 100-300 calories. That could really make a difference if I can kick that!!

Hi Ladies! :wave:

Just flying by with a :hug: for anyone that needs it! And a :kickbutt: for anyone needing one of those. How about a :cheer: or maybe just a :crazy:?

Today was a long day of work, gym, kids....I just finished getting ready for the morning and I'm off to bed .

Just wanted to pop in!

Have a great one.
xo

Hi Barb, and everyone. Thanks for the :kickbutt:! I've had a good day! My older son and I have come to an agreement that he won't be going back to boarding school (yeah!), and both boys are showing a five-pound loss this week, after a lot of work at helping them make better food choices and an increase in their activity levels. Tomorrow is my medical appointment, but since I started back on vitamins and food supplements, plus adding more regular food to the Medifast plan, I feel much better. I still think I'm having thyroid problems. We'll see what we find.

Tipper, I think finding the support situation that actually benefits you is the best choice. You got it right, your time is most valuable to you.

I love watching Obsession too! My godmother, who is a social worker, watches it with me and then we discuss and diagnose afterwards. And then we diagnose other people in our lives. It's great fun! I have to admit, I compulse over food as well. I used to be a compulsive overeater, but that behavior doesn't really fit any longer. I've done so much work. I'm curious to hear what you learn from your therapist. I used to work with a therapist who did The Solution Method by Laurel Mellin at UCSF. I was living overseas at the time and could only work the program a few weeks over the summer, but I found it very beneficial and I learned a lot. I'm thinking about going back to it, when other issues in life have settled out.

Heather, when you get that late afternoon/evening indulgence worked out and resolved, let me know how you do it, because I'm right at 1600 calories for the day and I really could eat a sandwich right now! I gotta turn off Anthony Bourdain and go to bed!

Georgia- Last night I didn't have an extra snack, and I did it by having a diet soda instead. I cup of tea would probably do the trick, too. So, that's my strategy for the next little while! I really want to get the scale to MOVE DOWN!