I'm going to keep to the allotted points. I want to eat clean wholesome food for its own sake and exercise for its own sake.
But since this is only day 1 for me, I don't know how things are going to be down the line when I'm at a healthy weight and exercising a lot...maybe I'll need the extra calories ... but I'm nowhere near there yet.
I think I'm going to use the same approach as far as using extra calories from exercise. I'm starting to use My Fitness Pal and it's giving me extra calories for any exercise I do, but I'm going to try to pretend I don't even have those for the day. May even refrain from logging exercise on MFP so the extra cals don't show up.
HI everybody! Another gorgeous day. I have Pilates later this afternoon. Otherwise, doing a lot of misc catch-up.
Well, even though I think I blew through the weeks' extra 'points' yesterday, the scale is inching downwards and I'm back on track. I kinda like the 'game' of WW...can't get around those points
Good morning, everybody! Seems like we're all feeling generally positive and on track; yay!
PhillyGirl - Doing laundry already? Rock on! lol that's a wonderful, productive way to start the day.
novangel - Hope you enjoyed the night off, and good luck getting back to the torture of Jillian.
Angelsmom - Congrats on the scale going in the right direction! Mine did too, and my instinct is also that it's always fooling me. But keep up the good work, and embrace the positive!
On a VERY bright note for me, I am weighing in today at 195.8, down from the 200 I was about a week and a half ago at the doctor. I am extremely surprised by this, as I have been eating like crap all weekend. Seriously, burgers, fries & milkshake for dinner last night, pizza the night before, birthday cake & some chocolate treats on top of that. I know I shouldn't put too much stock in the scale #, but it is always motivating to see a number I like.
Yesterday we took my boyfriend's parents and brother to a lovely park here in Seattle and did about 4 total miles walking trails and such, with a pretty significant incline on the way back to the car. I was surprised and happy that I never got too out of breath, which I had done the last time we did those trails back in Nov. 2011. Makes me think maybe I'm not in AS bad of shape as I thought.
Slight downside to family visit is that there are now a lot of treats in the house. Easter chocolate, breads, etc. I will just have to remind myself that if I eat ANY of it, must log it into MyFitnessPal. I like this site so much - it makes me feel like I don't have to deprive myself, as long as I balance out my daily food intake to equal my allotment. Is this system at all like the WW points, Exhale? I know they don't do simple calorie counting, but wondering what all goes into determining points for WW.
Well, happy Sunday to all and hope the positivity of today holds throughout the week.
Class was good; did lots of different things. Now I'm debating whether or not to do my laundry .. Philly, you were smart to do it early!
eyre13 - thank you !
ak, I don't know exactly how WW figures out their points...raw produce is generally '0' points; I think other items are pointed based on fats/carbs/protein ratios. I just know that I have to really pay attention because those points add up quickly.
eyre13 - Nice work getting started again with 30DS. It's always nice whenever a workout starts feeling easier and more manageable. Keep up the good work throughout the week!
I capitalized on my good attitude & motivation today by planning out meals for the week and grocery shopping. I've never had my cart so full of green produce before! I think a big help to me when I'm trying to lose is pre-planning, whether it's dinner or small snacks to have at work. When I know what I'll eat and when I'll eat it I am MUCH less likely to snack on junk food.
The tough part of this will be that the boyfriend is NOT a fan of veggies or healthy foods in general. I think this week will be a big adjustment for him. I'm trying to find stuff that both he and I will like, but he may end up having to cook his own separate meals on some nights. For example, one of the dishes for this week will be asparagus frittata - don't think I will have much luck at all even getting him to taste it. Anyone have advice on eating healthy when a boyfriend, husband, person you live with, etc. is not on the bandwagon?
yeah, but that was the only productive thing I did today. I'm in major relax mode. It didn't help watching paula dean and guest make butter pecan ice cream. I tell ya...if I had some buttermilk I would've made it. I'm just in the mood to experiment.
exhale, can you eat your own foods and calculate points? Can you tell us a little about the program?
ak812, you probably was a lot more mindful. Umm...can you get that stuff out of the house? For me I ate bbq chips just because they were here. Myfitnesspal is a good resource. I read the boards sometimes on that site and some people eat their calories back and some don't. I tend to exercise at night so there's no way I'd eat back those calories before going to bed.
I've not exercised in 3 days I think. I think I'm out of love with body revolution. She has these awkward moves or maybe they are just too advanced for me and it turns me off. I've lost my enthusiasm to get it done. In theory you work up to being more flexible/stronger and able to do more. I don't feel that way and am bored with the current weeks. I extended the workout last time and I think that's why I'm bored with it now. Sigh.
Have to say I haven't thoroughly reviewed the program yet, just kinda jumped in...they have a points system where you count up the number of points in what you've eaten, and a power food program where you only count non 'power foods' (i think) power foods being produce, lean meats and fat free dairy. I chose the points program, although they let you use either as you like. So you get a number of food points for the day, and then weekly points that you can use to go over the daily allowance. Despite my dismal track record so far, I plan to stick to my daily allotment. So let's say 27 points per day....there's a food tracker where I input what I've eaten, a drop down that includes their database of foods and points. So, an english muffin is 3 points, etc. And as you add them to your food tracker the program counts them up and you see how much you have left for the rest of your meals. Again, things like greens, apples, etc are zero points so eat up! Along the bottom of this tracking window is a section where they prompt for whether or not you had the recommended number of veggies, water, vitamins, exercise, etc. They have a recipe builder where you can input a recipe to get the number of points per serving. I don't see myself really using that much, would probably rather figure one cup of lentils and a tomato, etc, but maybe later on I'll get more fancy.
They also have a fitness tracker, again you get a number of points for the week and every day you track what you've done. So my hour of pilates is 5 points, etc. For the fitness tracker, their data base includes general types of exercises, plus some dvd workouts as well as some of their own workouts. You're supposed to log in your weight every week. And you can see progress reports re your weight, and food.
They establish your food and fitness points based on height, weight, gender, age, and general activity level, based upon previous week's activity.
The website also includes lots of interesting success stories, fitness/motivation/etc tips and the like. So I kinda like it. Especially the fact that everything, everything counts....like 1/2 slice of swiss cheese, 1/4 bagel...the types of things that I wouldn't even count as food all chip away at those precious points. I won't even begin to calculate what some of my indiscretions have cost me What I'll probably do is figure out some standard meals to rotate to keep it simple for myself and keep within my points -- which really is something I could do without WW, but it's kinda like a game in my mind. Also, WW 'tells' you to eat your produce, which is the kind of thing that I'm either doing really well ( as when I tried raw vegan for a week - felt great but hard for me to maintain ) or really badly ( as when I count green cookies ).
I've heard criticisms by some that WW focuses only on portions not on food quality, but I don't really see it that way. Sure, you can use up your points on junk, but I don't think most people would and the site also includes some healthy recipies. So like I said, I'll use this for the next couple of months to see how it affects by behavior.
Thanks for the breakdown. It does seem interesting. I just shied away from programs like this because of the cost factor. LOL @ chip away. Like those taste tests when your cooking or the piece of candy from your coworkers desk. Yup, it all adds up. I neglect those "free" calories too! I lack terribly in the veggie department. I do eat lots of salads, but that's about it. Do you have a smartphone? Is there an app that you can track on the go?
On another note....
I found a fabulous channel on youtube called freezerburnsdotcom. Yes, that whole thing is the name of the channel. They review items found in the freezer section of the supermarket. I thought it was an interesting idea to focus on taste testing common items anyone would buy. Check it out!
Myfitnesspal was a god send. I usually have calories left over at the end of the day, I try not to eat them back. I have gone over a few times but it's never catastrophic. Well, once I went over 500 calories. Oops.
Anyway, L2 conquered yet again. Have a nice night!
PhillyGirl - Sorry to hear you're feeling a little done with Body Revolution. Any plans to mix up the workouts in the upcoming week? For me, I will start with a "weight loss" Pilates workout On Demand tomorrow morning. Going to be way tough getting back into the swing of things after 1.5 months or so with very little exercise. Best of luck to you.
novangel - MyFitnessPal does indeed sound like a godsend! I finished today (Day 1) on track with everything I was alloted & still have cals (well, only 50), fat, and carbs to spare. Yay for kicking L2's butt again!! Way to start off the week right.
Exhale - Great WW info. You tried raw vegan for a week? Extremely impressive. I'd love to do that but think it would be VERY hard for me to maintain as well. lol @ counting green cookies as veggies. It's great that raw produce counts for 0 points - I'm jealous that I've got to log them in as calories on MFP! Looking forward to seeing how the WW journey unfolds for you.
Well, I'm off to prepare for the week ahead. Hate how quickly the weekends go & how sloooow the weekdays progress. Have a few early AM appts (doctor, dentist, etc.) this week so will have to get up extra early to squeeze workouts in. Also getting a bit nervous about staying on track w/ calories & such at work. I teach Pre-K at a daycare center and eat lunch w/ the kids - food is fairly healthy but I never have any idea what to record the cals as. MFP is pretty good about having a large database of food, so hopefully I can find whatever I eat on there. Also will have to avoid any and all treats that are laid out in the kitchen at work. Ah!
the scale went down but maybe it's tricking me lol I'll update my weight tomorrow.
all chip away at those precious points. I won't even begin to calculate what some of my indiscretions have cost me 
What I'll probably do is figure out some standard meals to rotate to keep it simple for myself and keep within my points -- which really is something I could do without WW, but it's kinda like a game in my mind. Also, WW 'tells' you to eat your produce, which is the kind of thing that I'm either doing really well ( as when I tried raw vegan for a week - felt great but hard for me to maintain ) or really badly ( as when I count green cookies ).
