Red-That's how I am...it's all or nothing. As you have noticed the fast food challenge has been the hardest for me. If only I could give up fast food completely. I know I'd loose a lot of weight once it is completely out of my diet! If I can keep up that challenge for the next 10 days I'll be off to a good start! I hope your co-workers become more encouraging to you soon! You're doing great on your NO alcohol challenge!! A big high five for you!!! And sometimes the weight sticks on, but all of sudden you'll have a huge loss of weight...it comes off all at once sometimes. Stick to it, and you'll see the results!!!
How's everyone else doing?! HERE'S TO A GOOD DAY!!!!!!!
My challenges are as follows (each are separate):
-Only eat 1200 calories --Day 13 (NO pauses left)
-NO fast food --Day 13 (NO pauses left)
-NO eating past 7pm--Day 16 (3 pauses left)
-Exercise Daily--Day 15 (2 pauses left)
-Drink 5 glasses of water or more--Day 16 (3 pauses left)
I made it through another day. But, I'm not feeling too good about it. Well, about it, yes, but overall, no.
The reason is that I couldn't sleep last night and am now up at 4 a.m. Not good.
I had a major breakthrough yesterday and a small one too. The small one was that I got to the gym again and enjoyed it. Did more than usual and wrote everything down, key to making progress!
The major one was that I went out "drinking" with a friend but had NO alcohol. When I told her I wasn't drinking she was surprised but OK with it and suggested we go to a restaurant, not a bar. But the bar had half-off on their beer and that's why I had suggested it some days ago (before I decided to quit drinking). I insisted on going and had NO problem not drinking. Problem is that there were no nonalcoholic drinks I wanted (just sugary juice drinks and soda) other than oolong tea. I was worried about the caffeine but got that anyhow. I only had one but I couldn't sleep at all until only shortly before I had to get up. Really ugh. I don't know if it was the caffeine, the late exercise (I bicycled home), the lots of food (never bothered me before), the horrible itching I had, the heat, or the strenuous workout at the gym that did it but something did. I am going to have to call that a pause on caffeine. I can't imagine I'm that sensitive to the caffeine that one glass would upset me, but maybe I am.
Anyone, good day as far as the challenges went. I had no problem not drinking because the person I went with could hold a conversation. I've been hanging out with people I have little in common with other than the desire to down pint after pint. Good realization!! Please wish me luck on what will surely be an exhausting day.
Good foods challenge -- Day 3 completed
No sugar! -- Day 3 completed
No alcohol -- Day 10 completed 1 pause taken
No smoking -- Day 11 completed 1 pause taken
Journal -- Day 12 completed
Caffeine Cut (Round 2!) -- Day 20 completed 1 pause taken
**************
Sara -- Thanks for the encouragement. I sure hope I can see a weight loss soon. I soon won't have the coworkers to deal with so I'm not worried about that and these past couple triumphs have made me strong when it comes to "persuasions." The crucial thing is that I WANT to not drink and, perhaps more importantly, I know that alcohol is doing nothing for me at this point. When I was younger, yes, I used it to talk as I was very shy, but I'm not shy any more.
Good going on your challenges. Just hang in there for another week. Maybe it's best if you stay OUT of the fast-food joints. No need to tempt yourself. Eat good foods and the temptation should be less. The stuff is truly garbage. Think of trans-fats and highly processed junk, NOT what your body wants.
When I first came to Japan I never saw people with bad skin or excess weight. NOT any more. And now I see Mac's all over the place as well. Connection? You bet!
diyana -- Thank you as well for your encouraging words. Wisconsin sounds like Pittsburgh too. Friendly people. It is a very nice thing. When I was in Pgh. a few years ago (the suburbs actually) I would ride my bike along a trail every morning and every single person I met would say hello. It was nice. Here, no one says hello unless you know them and that is even if you see them every morning by passing them on the street. I don't mind it but it is kind of weird.
Keep up the good work on your challenges and thanks again for your long and thoughtful posts! :yes;
I just weighed in and my weight has gone YET higher! I am so disgusted. Yes, I know, it's a lot of things, but I just can't take this garbage anymore. I am starting to really hate my body. It hangs on to every bit of fat it can, even when I'm eating right, etc. I just don't get it.
I took a pause day yesterday for a friend's farewell dinner but stayed strong tonight with a cutoff @ 8.30pm.
No crazy challenges like the ones you've got going on, but it's hard enough for me to not open that fridge and hoover whatever's inside the second the sun sets!
Day 1
No snacking - 3 pauses
1300Cal per day - 3 pauses
1 litre water per day - 3 pauses
Starting again with the crunches - didn't forget them. Just didn't do them.
100 abs and crunches per day - 3 pauses.
Red - good on you for going to a bar and not drinking. I understand the sweet and gooey drinks. Japanese like their sweet things very sweet. I can remember politely trying to eat the flower shaped sweets at a dinner one night. But then I've never been a sugar person - which is quite amusing when you remember that I live in the sugar state. Cane fields forever from here to Cairns.
Everyone seems to be beavering away on their challenges. Rock on girls.
Red - Congrats on your breakthroughs! All three of them major in my book! Going to the gym AND enjoying it - that's wonderful! Going out for drinks and not drinking - superb! AND realizing that you don't need to drink if you're with someone with whom you can converse! That's a fantastic realization!! You go, girlfriend!! Sorry the scale isn't showing the results, but it will. Just keep with it. You're doing great! Funny how you mention that Pittsburgh is a friendly community similar to Wisconsin. The Green Bay Packers have a football coach from Pittsburgh, and he's commented several times how similar Wisconsin and it's people are to Pittsburgh.
Sara - I used to have an all or nothing mentality in many areas of my life, but it didn't work for me. Now I strive for progress and persistence, rather than perfection.
Monkey - Congrats on staying strong after sundown!
Shad - I too have a hard time getting my crunches in and am starting over with them.
I didn't get to the gym after work. Had to do some freelance website work and by the time I was done...I decided a walk with one of my doggies would be better. So we had a great brisk 25 minute walk, up and down hills. It was a beautiful evening.
Today, I'm going to have to take the stairs a lot at work otherwise I won't get any exercise. I've got a WW meeting at lunch. After work, I have a meeting that will probably go until 8 or 8:30, then I have to go and check in on 3 loveable dogs whose owners are on vacation, so I probably won't get home until 9 or 9:30 and hopefully be asleep by 10.
Journal and Stay within points - 2 pauses left - Day 15 completed.
Gym or walk at least 25 minutes - 2 pauses left - Day 14 completed.
I didn't do my ab exercises, so I have to start over, but I'm going to wait until Friday to start...as tonight is just way too busy.
50 ab exercises - 3 pauses left - Starting over on Friday
The scale was not my friend today. Up 2.2 lbs to 225.8. I can understand why - fair and festival eating...plus indulging in a couple treats during the week. All that combined with not getting to the gym very often. I'll turn it around for this week so the scale and I will once again become best buds.
Day 2
No snacking - 3 pauses
1300Cal per day - 3 pauses
1 litre water per day - 3 pauses
I'll get back to the crunches some time soon. At the moment I am busy with shifting things, heavy things like boxes (full) and bricks, so I get the exercise fairly well.
Well done Red. Knew you had it in you.
Gotta go. Used up my computer time this morning and I am hungry. Forget to eat yesterday. Only 943 calories eventually.
Well, I'm completely infuriated. My weight remains super high and I am going to just forget this garbage. Something is wrong! I can't take it anymore.
Good foods challenge -- Day 4 completed
No sugar! -- Day 4 completed
No alcohol -- Day 11 completed 1 pause taken
No smoking -- Day 12 completed 1 pause taken
Journal -- Day 13 completed
Caffeine Cut (Round 2!) -- Day 21 completed 1 pause taken CHALLENGE FINISHED!!!
Well done on the caffeine challenge Red.
As for the other stuff, well patience and perservance is the key. You will lose some of the stress today and that may help although I know you don't have a lot to come and go on and no job to go to, it will get better. Hang in there.
Red- You're making so many wonderful lifestyle changes and you're doing so well with them! Rather than focus on the scale...focus on your achievements! Congratulations on your caffeine cut round 2! You rock!!! As Shad said, you'll lose some of your stress today...and that will mean your body will produce less cortisol, which causes your body to hold on to weight and fat! Just stick with all your healthy habits and you'll be fine in no time! And as I've said before, you're going to find a great job soon, I'm sure of it.
Shad - Well done on your challenges!
I didn't get to walk yesterday. WW meeting at lunch, meetings and pet sitting after work.
Journal and Stay within points - 2 pauses left - Day 16 completed.
Gym or walk at least 25 minutes - 1 pauses left - Day 14 completed.
50 ab exercises - 3 pauses left - Starting over today
Well, it's done and gone, the old office. It went out with a bang last night and I didn't have a drop of alcohol! I was out till 2:30 a.m. from a 19:30 start that evening, was at four bars and still only stuck to oolong tea and tomato juice. I admit I did smoke, but the not drinking was utterly frigging amazing. People were knocking back the beer and tequila shots and no one seemed to even notice, let alone care that I wasn't drinking. Ok, maybe that doesn't say much for what they thought of me, but.... Besides, there were six of us quitting so it wasn't like I was the focus of attention or anything. Mass exodus. Only toward the end did one guy express amazement when he asked if I'd been drinking and realized I hadn't. Well, not amazement. He didn't say anything so I don't know if he thought that was good or bad or what, but whatever... I have a lonely, sad feeling in me though because things are over but I'm trying hard to keep it at bay. Not drinking and getting in exercise will help blast it I hope!
Yeah, so it was good and today I have no hangover of course.
A smaller group may have been harder but this was still a first. It's weird looking at people as they get drunk. I don't care at all. It's all SO familiar....lol. And maybe that's why they don't care if I'm not drinking too.
Anyhow, the full impact of being gone from the company probably won't hit until Monday as my weekend routine won't really change, but this is the start of some ME time again. What a relief!
Good foods challenge -- Day 5 completed
No sugar! -- Day 5 completed
No alcohol -- Day 12 completed 1 pause taken
No smoking -- Day 12 completed 2 pauses taken
Journal -- Day 14 completed
Caffeine Cut (Round 3!) -- Day 0 completed 0 pauses taken
**************
Shad -- Thanks, Shad for the support. Sorry about the wingeing yesterday. Good thing I didn't go further. In fact, I felt TOO bad to go on. If I had felt any less bad, I would have ranted on ad nauseum.
diiyana -- Always the sweetie, aren't you? Thanks. Yes, I know I have to focus on my "achievements" but because I don't see the results, the scale takes center stage. You're right though, it's a matter of time before my body lets go of the stress and I am truly rocking! What's up with the ab exercises? How far did you get? Now that I have the time, I want to start up some exercise challenges to help get me out of my rut. I do the same exercise all the time, even when I'm doing well. Time to shake this bod up!
monkey, Sara, Jazzy, miriam, OTHERS, how's it going?
Red, time for some simple things in life for a week or so. It's never going to be easy, but for the next week, take it easy. Get up late, go to bed early, eat well, go to the gym, go to the horse. Have a weeks leave and then get into looking for a job in an unfriendly climate. I'm in the same boat. But at least I am getting over the last assignment now. There are good days and bad days, but I'm beginning to at least feel normal.
And sometimes the weight sticks on, but all of sudden you'll have a huge loss of weight...it comes off all at once sometimes. Stick to it, and you'll see the results!!!
good again...
The small one was that I got to the gym again and enjoyed it. Did more than usual and wrote everything down, key to making progress!
Go ladies go! 
I can understand why - fair and festival eating...plus indulging in a couple treats during the week. All that combined with not getting to the gym very often. I'll turn it around for this week so the scale and I will once again become best buds. 
done!!
