I'm Some GIRL in the gym was showing off her abs and doing lots of weights and stuff Not fair! I have the monopoly on the girl-who-lifts-heavy-weights thing at the gym! Well actually I probably could squat more than her - her upper body was ripped and she had great delts and back, but she used one of those vibroplates for her legs anyway and she was wearing a crop-top. HUFF.
Actually it was great - there were only two of us in the free weights bit, her doing flyes with stupidly heavy weights, about 10kg I think... Not that I was looking And me cranking out my 72.5kg squats and calf raises! GRRRRRRRRRRRRRL power!
Checking in--I'm sidelined a bit. Developed an injury from the running (my hip never hurt me until now!), so cardio is out until I heal. Still doing weights and enjoying that.
My own weight, well, that rose and rose, in 3 weeks I went from 295 to 304.5, but now at 302. I wasn't pigging out, kept my calories around 1700, but my choices were not 100% ideal. Am feeling so terribly uncomfortable in my own skin. I really seem to react to carbs and dairy. Even if good, complex carbs and staying within my caloric range, I gain weight (water weight perhaps) so fast and easy. I can't stand it.
I'm feeling very annoyed with myself, that one meal off in a week can throw my body outa whack, and yet I so desire that one meal off. What's wrong with me?
I really, really am thinking of Medifast. Here's why--they'd put me at 1200 calories, it's very low carb, so ketosis comes into play. It is nutritionally sound for the low calorie and high protein. It would be their shakes, bars, chilis, soups, etc. and one meal of veggies and protein. And it would be easy (ordered food) and have variety. Ultimately, maybe it would get the scale moving.
I'm just so confused. I understand the science of weight loss, how the body needs fuel to manage what it has, and the math of weight loss--calories in and out, so then why can't I lose?
I'm going to keep working the weights (had them for a week now) for another 2 weeks and if I'm not back to around 297 within that period, then I'm going to do Medifast.
Maybe my body needs that little in terms of calories to make it move? I'm just, as I said, feeling so uncomfortable. I feel my weight gain even as I sit. I have a hard time imagining regaining the 40 lbs more I once had on me.
In the shower! This is day two of NO SCHOOL. So far this morning DSs have taken all of my kitchen chairs into the living room stripped their beds of all the blankets and built a fort for the two of them to hide in. Yeah, its a mess and they have pretty much taken over the house, but at least they are working together and not fighting.
No gym yesterday or today. It's open, no doubt but it's about a half hour drive and I just don't want to take the boys out in this weather. Whimp, I know. I could do some bodyweight exercises here. Thanks for the video link Mel. I also saw one on utube that used playground equipment for their workout. Maybe once it is warmer and if the playgroups have gone home for their naps, I'll give it a shot.
Eating is very clean for three days. It's a struggle though. I think its a combination of lowering my carb intake plus this cold weather. When I am home nesting I also want to bake. Not gonna do it though.
SUSAN: Enjoy that main floor laundry! I'd head out into the cold for supplies in that case too. Mine is still buried in the basement. Oh well, little extra cardio. My dream is to have a real mudroom off of my garage. Forget the updated, state of the art dream kitchen. I'm the mother of two active sons. Give me a mudroom with a washer and dryer. I'll hold court there.
ELISA: Keep working on those runs. I'm setting my sights on my first 5k too but like you I just don't know when that's going to be. Maybe this fall. There's one in the evening downtown that I would like to try too. We'll see.
MEL: How's the back this morning? I really hope it's not serious Be careful today okay!
PAT: Have a nice time in Anchorage. There you are driving a 100 miles in this arctic weather and I won't even go twenty to the gym. Okay, so I didn't have my car winterized this fall. Can I use that as a excuse?
BETH: A six year old doing one handed pushups. OMG. Where was this! On FitTV? I wonder if my DS could do that? He's at that funny age where they are all arms and legs and act really goofy. All his friends are there too so I now it's not just him.
NELIE, TIKI, FRU, RABBIT: Hello to all of you too! Have a great morning and stay warm. Enjoy those flowers Rabbit. Mine sprouted from the ground three weeks ago but needless to say they're frozen now!
Now FRU! You still have the monopoly of being THE GIRL in the gym. Come on. You know it! A little competition is good. Besides, I bet SHE doesn't have a brown belt. And if she give you any trouble, just let us know. Just kidding.
Okay. I got to go referee two boys having a "disagreement" in their living room fort. Now, they're throwing popcorn. Geesh. I can't WAIT till spring.
Girl power is right Fru. She can come in the free weight area as long as she understands that that is where YOU hold court! Good job on those squats and calf presses.
SuB, I would walk in freezing weather too to have a main floor laundry room. My house is a colonial so I have to take laundry from upstairs, down past the main floor all the way down to the basement. No wonder my legs have always been strong.
Mel, I hadn't thought about the trainer and quotas. Now I feel bad for being so short with her. I'll be more gracious going forward. Thanks for putting me in her shoes for a minute.
Lydia, my kids school is closed today too. You should crawl around in the boys fort too. I'm sure they would get a kick out of it. Bring a flashlight a good book and some popcorn. I remember doing that when I was a child. My 4 brothers and I would get all the dining room chairs, the cushions off the couch, blankets, flashlights, that board game TROUBLE and some books and we were no trouble for at least half the day.
Rabbit, I'm jealous of you. I love crocus and I have none now nor will I have any when spring arrives. I suck at gardening.
I made it to the gym last night for hi-impact cardio with a teacher that I believe is on crack! My bag is packed for today so I can leave work and go straight to the gym. In fact, my running tights are under my skirt cause it's FREEZING COLD. I didn't pack enough food for the day so I'm calling on willpower to help me make a healthy purchase in the store downstairs. Almost like looking for a needle in a haystack but I'll do my best.
Good morning to the rest of the gang. Eat clean, sling iron, move your butt and above all else, STAY WARM.
After we fix the back deck so that you can get at it from the driveway ... all us familials will walk right up, across the deck and into that 'back room' which will have washer, dryer, freezer, pantry cupboards, wet boot mats and coat hangers. Right now we come in the front which is about 3 feet square! It'll be heavenly!
I've just looked at your stats and see that you've lost three inches since August. Right? I think this is wonderful and is a sure sign that you are going in the right direction.
Sometimes, no matter which plan we adopt or tweak, it can take time for the body to respond especially if we use the scale as our guide. You have probably heard us talk about the pant-o-meter. I think it's one of the best guides for those of us who lift. Many of us have reported to see a slight gain on the scale following a heavy lifting day. Legs for me are the worst. When you lift everyday, the scale may not indicate any weight loss right away. It may even show an increase initially. Not to worry. Keep taking those measurements and choose a size smaller pants or jeans as your goal. Try them on every four weeks and see what happens.
In your message you indicated that you've gained weight over the last few weeks. It's difficult to pinpoint an exact cause but maybe there are a combination of factors here. Maybe the combination of the meal over the weekend caused you to retain water and since you are lifting, your muscles are holding onto a little extra too. Flush it out with lots of water this week and try some green tea. See if this helps.
Please keep using those wonderful free weights. They will get you the results you are looking for. Building and maintaining muscle is a great way to increase your resting metabolism. They will also keep your bones nice and strong.
I don't really know a lot about the Medifast program although you have posted some highlights. The caloric level really looks too low. I suspect you already know that. One of my concerns with going to 1200 calories from the beginning is that you will have no where to decrease your intake should you need to tweak it further in several months. Maybe 1700 is too much. How about 1500? Meg/Mel could advise you better with this...
I just really don't know about "organized" weightloss groups. I know a lot of people have had success with them and just because I haven't, I really need to be careful here. However, my experience has been that while I could lose the weight initially, I couldn't keep it off. Bottom line was I never learned how to take the focus off of food until now.
For the past year and half I have been eating a BFL style. The thing that is different for me this time is that my focus is no longer upon the food but my workouts. My goal is not so much a number on the scale or a pant size in my closet but rather just to become very fit. I might also add that my concept of myself as fit is evolving. Two years ago I never thought that I would be lifting weights and running. I weighed close to 200 lbs. On my 5'2'' frame, that was a lot. I've always been actively busy but found that I just couldn't DO all the things I wanted to do because of physical limitations. Now, I want the ripped abs that FRU referred to in her message this morning. (yeah, I know, those are made in the kitchen, another thread..)
IMHO I think that you should continue eating clean foods every three hours with a balanced carb and protein. Generally I eat at 7:30am, 11:00am, 3:00pm, and 6:00pm. If I eat anything after 7:00pm, it will show up on the scale the next day. (yeah, okay, I do still weigh myself every morning...but just looking for overall trends. )
Now, about that hip injury you incurred while running. Is it getting better? How long has the pain lasted? If it isn't getting better and you have trouble just walking please go get it checked out.
In the meantime, do you have access to a recumbent bike, elliptical, or pool? These may be ways to get in your cardio if they do not irritate your hip while it heals. You will be able to maintain your current level of cardio endurance through these methods. In my case, I actually improved it while doing HIIT on the bike and elliptical
I've also taken a peek at your blog. Hope you don't mind. In it something you said struck me as something I often thought too. It probably resonates with many of us actually. In it you refer to wanting to eat the way you see other people eat. Oh boy, so do I. But ya know, "we" meaning everyone, not just those who watch our intake, were NOT MEANT to have a coffee milkshake and an oversized bagel/muffin on our way to the office each morning. And yet, people do it everyday. Some have the metabolisms of hummingbirds, my sister, some do not, me. But just because those places are there on every corner does not mean that we are entitled to frequent them. In the early days when I would see someone enjoying one of those treats I just assumed this was something they did all of the time and could still remain trim. Now, I assume that this is the one treat that the person has planned in their eating for the week/month. And if I am planning my treat do I really want to spend it there.
Anyway, I hope that in some way I have been able to help. I don't know that I have any quick easy answer for you. I do know that place you are in though. I remember how frustrated I felt just before I began my journey using the BFL style of eating and lifting. I just didn't think I had it in me to attend one more WW meeting. I'm just so grateful that I found this instead and it worked for me.
Good luck , keep the food clean, lift heavy, drink lots of water and just keep moving!
Very good post Lydia. Well thought out. I feel ya on that 200 on a 5'2 frame. I'm also 5'2 and I know from experience that is not cute, it's hard on the body especially when you are chasing after two children (both of us).
I got lucky on the food front in that a co-worker ordered a huge meal for her team and most of them worked from home today - too cold. So instead of going downstairs for my afternoon meal, i have a healthy salad of iceburg (job's) and romaine lettuce (brought from home) oven roasted turkey breast (job's) tomatoes (brought from home) pickles (job's) and FF cheddar cheese (brought from home) lightly sprinkled with raspberry vinegar (brought from home). The food lords must be smiling on me today
About this weather, now I can really complain. Not only is it cold, but it's snowing. Little tiny flakes but thick and fast. I can tell this is going to last all night. I took DS1 to a playdate an hour after it started and the roads were horrible. I can't wait till he comes home and I know he is safe. I also canceled my physical therapy session tonight. Maybe she will be able to go home early too since I'm her last client.
How cool about your lunch. Yes, the food gods smiled upon you today.
Gosh Lydia, you are just so level-headed with such good common sense. Can I adopt you as my sister? What a nice post. I agree that this time, I feel like the "SPRINT" is over, as is the obsession about food, and I am into living my new "life." I often catch myself thinking, "how did this happen," and "how have I been able to do this?" It's a long road of diets that DIDN'T work and the wrong mindset, I think, plus all the education and support from this site, but specifically this forum (SERIOUSLY).
Now when I think about choices of treats, I find myself saying, "but that isn't even FOOD." When I put food into me, I want it to be real food that will fill me up and get energy. I guess I've been brainwashed! :0
Lydia! That was a fantastic post. I think you said everything perfectly!
JerseyGirl, most of us have been there, and found that our current lifestyle of eating clean, weights and cardio is the only way we've been able to maintain a weightloss. You WILL lose-- it will be slower than a 1200 calorie medifast diet, but what happens when you stop the medifast diet, and how will you look and feel? If you're having cravings and feeling deprived now, think about life on 1200 calories. Go up to the "success stories" forum and read Meg's story.
Try to find a lower impact form of cardio. I lost most of my weight using a recumbent bike- no running involved! Running is high impact and hard on joints for anyone, worse if you are carrying that much weight now. You don't want to reach goal, or get half way there and need a hip or knee replacement!
Please give yourself more of a chance. Lydia had some great suggestions for you
Hey Lydia, I hear that Columbus has ONE snow plow and it's a big John Deere Havester with a plow attached Have fun at home tomorrow. DD says OSU is the only thing open in Columbus.
Tiki- lumch sounds wonderful!
SusanB- Wow! I'm envious. I have a first floor laundry but it's so tiny that the builder/architect should have been shot! I can't actually sort all my laundry in there, and when ds dumps his coat and dh dumps his hockey equipment, I have to just abandon it.
Fru- Don't be jealous...this is an opportunity! Make a friend! you can have a lifting partner who can spot you without staring down your shirt....I hope.
My back is still kind of twingey. Not hurt bad, but it's there Did chest and cardio today. Clean eats. I'm cold and hungry. Maybe time for peppermint tea!
Mel? tell me what you ate today ... I'm in a funk and could use the encouragment. A bath tub full of greens and .....
Anybody? tell me your good stuff.
Gee thanks Fran. I'm with you. This past summer and fall I spent a lot of time thinking about how did I really lose this weight. Previously, I've had a lot of starts with not so successful endings. This past year I have even taken this weight loss for granted. (gosh, hard to admit) But I did on some level. Kind of like yea, I lost some weight, now on to the next thing. It's not until the old pictures come out that I think "Oh yea, I remember that now."
I have really just maintained my weight and fitness this fall and early winter. At the beginning of this year I have recomited to my plan because I am not yet where I want to be. Darn it's hard. I now remember how I did it last year and every sacrifice it took to get me this far. Remember my oatmeal cravings last week? I'm still hanging in there. What I do know is that it takes time, the cravings will even out, eventually my body will lose inches and then the scale will drop. Usually in that order too.
You are also right about some of the treats not even being real food choices. When we acknowledge this and strive to make use of food as fuel for our workouts and the growth of our bodies it makes that Little Debbie Oatmeal Creme Pie all the less appealing. I look at that thing and think, man what will my body make of this spongy little thing?
Anyway, enough of my soapbox tonight. Thanks again Fran. And you know what, I really think that you are also doing a fantastic job. Its cool that, you see food as fuel for Meg and Mel's squat challenges. Your head is certainly in the right place for achieving your fitness goals
MEL: Just saw your post. One John Deere Harvester?! OUCH! Actually, we have two... and I passed both of them while taking DS1 to his playdate this afternoon. Another mother was going to bring him back to my house. I nearly cried when he walked though the door at 6:45. Poor child.
OSU rarely ever closes. So your DD is correct. The whole city has to come to a screeching halt before they consider closing campus. It happened during one of my (ahem) seven years there and I think it was due to frigid temps. I'm surprised that they didn't cancel classes this week.
I guess it will be another tent city in my living room tomorrow. Better get to bed early tonight to gear up for it.
Lydia - loved your post and so much of it rang so true with me. I'm still struggling regularly to "eat clean" as you all like to say. It's so hard to really see food differently after so long and I'm not quite at the point where I question the value of everything I eat. So far I'm still just questioning the calories!
For me, it's still about changing one thing at at time. I changed the way I ate and lost weight. When I got thinner, I decided that I now wanted to be healthier. This brings me to where I am now. It's journey, I guess. I think that when I feel healthier and stronger, I'll start to look at food differently again. But I'm not there yet.
It's interesting too how you forget how far you've come. I had my annual checkup today at the doctor and I've only been seeing him for maybe a couple of years so he doesn't know me too well. So we somehow got on the discussion of weight/food/health etc. and when I told him that I once weighed about 50 lbs. more he was shocked. I don't know what an "ex-overweight" person looks like but he said that he thought that my whole body shape and size seemed so average, he couldn't picture me overweight.
I know he didn't mean his comments to be negative in any way and I didn't take them that way. What struck me was first how nice it is to be considered average. And also was that I didn't have an answer when he asked me how/why I had been overweight and why I was suddenly able to do something about it.
I'm still not sure what exactly clicked with me, but obviously something did. I'm trying to have a healthier relationship with food and my body and myself.
Okay, I guess maybe we're all in a philosophical mood today so I'll stop my rambling.
Sorry too for the long post. Lots of stuff on my mind!
And finally, I'd love to hear anyone's ideas on their "clean eating". What does it mean to you? What does a typical food day look like. Like Susan, I need some motivation too!
Some GIRL in the gym was showing off her abs and doing lots of weights and stuff 
Not fair! I have the monopoly on the girl-who-lifts-heavy-weights thing at the gym! 
Well actually I probably could squat more than her - her upper body was ripped and she had great delts and back, but she used one of those vibroplates for her legs 
anyway and she was wearing a crop-top. HUFF.
And me cranking out my 72.5kg squats and calf raises! 
GRRRRRRRRRRRRRL power! 
This is day two of NO SCHOOL. So far this morning DSs have taken all of my kitchen chairs into the living room stripped their beds of all the blankets and built a fort for the two of them to hide in. Yeah, its a mess and they have pretty much taken over the house, but at least they are working together and not fighting. 
I also saw one on utube that used playground equipment for their workout. Maybe once it is warmer and if the playgroups have gone home for their naps, I'll give it a shot.
Okay, so I didn't have my car winterized this fall. Can I use that as a excuse?
Come on. You know it! 
A little competition is good. 
Besides, I bet SHE doesn't have a brown belt. 
And if she give you any trouble, just let us know.
Just kidding.
They will get you the results you are looking for. Building and maintaining muscle is a great way to increase your resting metabolism. They will also keep your bones nice and strong.
I weighed close to 200 lbs. On my 5'2'' frame, that was a lot. I've always been actively busy but found that I just couldn't DO all the things I wanted to do because of physical limitations. Now, I want the ripped abs that FRU referred to in her message this morning. 
it's snowing. Little tiny flakes but thick and fast. I can tell this is going to last all night. 
I took DS1 to a playdate an hour after it started and the roads were horrible. 
I can't wait till he comes home and I know he is safe. 
Did chest and cardio today. Clean eats. I'm cold and hungry. Maybe time for peppermint tea!
