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I lost 3.6 lbs. this week....okay, here's the weird thing. I used all my 15 earned activity points, except 1.5, ALL my extra weekly points, daily I came in under my points a couple days, but basically used my daily points fully each day. I went out to eat twice, once was burgers, garlic cheese fries and a shake, and I did split one meal with my husband, and we split the shake, but it was big enough to call it a regular small for me anyway...and I did take a HUGE hour and 40 minute walk through downtown with my husband afterwards, but still....that's not clean eating for sure. And, the other night was chinese food and I had seconds...I did count the points though (that's where I used the most of my extra weekly points). I showed a 3 lb. gain the night after but for the week I lost 3.6 from last week.
I eat 5 to 6 small meals a day, my diet is very clean all week for my normal meals. I never take a cheat day or meal...even when I go out and don't eat clean, I still count the points and I don't consider that cheating, I see that as living realistically.
My diet consists of oatmeal or brown rice cereal, bee pollen, flaxseed, wheatgerm, fresh fruits (berries, bananas, nectarines, watermelon, honeydew melon, pears, pineapple, etc.) vegetables (squash, cucumbers, tomatoes, greens, green beans, corn, carrots, asparagus, etc.) sweet potatos, whole wheat pasta, olive and canola oil, onions, garlic, chicken tenders, ground lean turkey meat, hickory smoked tuna, eggs, lots of them for protein ~ usually 1 whole egg and 3 whites per serving, canadian bacon (nitrate and nitrite free), light provolone cheese, ezekiel bread or lo cal whole grain bread, organic soups, whole wheat tortillas, bran flakes, fat free or 1% milk, stevia (natural sugar substitute), coffee creamer. Most of my items or organic...some are not...depends on my finances. I try to eat a protein and a complex carb at every meal...all my meals usually include a fruit or vegetable (sometimes they serve as my carb but I also incorporate lots of whole grain products too).
I try to mix up my foods each week and choose different varieties of foods or try new items as long as they are whole and not processed. I don't do 100% unprocessed foods, only because I can't afford 100% yet, so I pick and choose which are most important to me to be organic and unprocessed.
I exercise about 4 days a week and walk alot. Right now I don't regiment it...I just look for opportunities to be active and do it. My exercise is usually my step (aerobics) and some squats and floorwork. I also do isometrics at my desk when I'm doing data entry. I will contract my abs and hold for one entire transaction, then let go for the next and repeat until all my entries are done...usually 50 to 60 entires. I will also do squats, lunges or calf raises while in the elevator if no one else is in there...I can get one 15 rep set in per elevator ride. I will also walk up and down the 4 flights of stairs in the stairwell at work 2 to 3 times on my break or lunch. And, I will often walk the neighborhood on one of my breaks as well. when I start going to the gym I will have a normal weight lifting regime and cardio 4 to 5 times a week. I also want to go roller skating at least twice a month with my sister (we do that for fun tho!) I also like to ride my bike in the evenings with my husband but haven't been able to lately because the tires deflate overnight, I need to have them replaced completely and finances are tight right now.
I wanted to write all this down so you can see that I'm not starving myself and I'm getting exercise and good foods in. I think my combination of clean eating, eating small meals all day and exercising has created a fire to burn fat that works well for my particular body. I have no idea if this would work for anyone else...I listen and pay very close attention to my body...if it's not happy I don't keep doing what it doesn't like. So far, I feel good, healthy, energetic and I'm sleeping better. My skin is clearing up and I notice that I don't have heartburn EVER anymore...I also don't have as many allergy issues as I use to. I still have them, but they are less aggressive.
At this point I've completely made some serious changes in my mind...my mindset is so different. First, and most important, I understand and have a very keen awarness of my addiction to food. I am always concerned about triggering binges and recognize when one is trying to manifest. When I start to feel that I immediately go into my mental work and get myself busy with some exercise or jump on YouTube and start watching videos...I think about my goals, I think about the Diaries' girls, I think about what my mom is going through with her health right now and I remember why it's important for me not to give in to that addiction...I'm worth MORE than that and finally I end that mental talk with me talking to myself like I'm my own child...and I kinda wrap myself with love and protection and say "this is gonna pass...just let it pass sweetie..." and for some reason that works. Hmmm....I wonder if I sound crazy...lol
My sister and I took my mom to Sacramento on Thursday for her Kidney Transplant initial consultations and screenings. We were so tired, having started at 4:30 a.m. for the long drive,all day appointments and alot of emotional realizations, we needed COFFEE for the drive home. My sister was going to drive, but I wanted to stay awake to help her stay awake. So, we stopped for some coffee and I decided to get a drink that had regular sugar in it (my thinking was I had enough points and I figured the sugar would help jolt me awake). I was okay with the conscience decision...but when I took a sip, it was so incredibly sweet it burned the back of my throat. My sister tasted it and said it was pretty sweet but she'd drink it if I didn't want it. I thought WOW! My body can't handle that anymore. I also felt a slimy film on the roof of my mouth. So, I gave it to her and decided to load up on some water, fruit and whole grain crackers and light cheese instead. (I packed a cooler to bring with me and ate from it all day long.)
I want my weight loss to slow down but I honestly feel like I'm eating and behaving in the most healthful ways and I don't want to change that. I want to put nutrition in my body...and I want to exercise for all the positive benefits it affords (mainly I want to prevent osteoporosis with weight training rather than drugs) and I'm working on my endurance so I'm not winded when I walk down the street anymore.
I weighed in at 239.0 this morning bringing my total lost to 21.8 lbs. :)
My Stats:
06/20/2009 260.8 start weight
06/27/2009 258.4 -2.4
07/04/2009 257.4 -1.0
07/11/2009 257.4 -0.0
07/18/2009 258.0 +0.6
07/25/2009 254.2 -3.8 (started weight watchers the week before)
08/01/2009 249.8 -4.4
08/08/2009 248.2 -1.6
08/15/2009 246.6 -1.6
08/22/2009 242.6 -4.0 18.2 Total lost so far
Hello and welcome to my story. I'm going to start by introducing myself and letting you know how I got to where I am right now.
I've been overweight my entire adult life. As a teen I was a competitive roller skater, and stayed in pretty good shape....weighing around 140 lbs. I was very active but had horrible eating habits. I wasn't raised on a balanced diet. The only reason I wasn't large at that time was because of the extraordinary amount of physical exercise I did as a skater.
The year I got married, I gained 40 lbs. almost immediately, so fast, in fact that I developed quite a few stretch marks. It puzzled me at the time...why this was happening. I had never really struggled with my weight and was confused as to why it was coming on so fast.
After my marriage I stopped skating, started work as a Secretary where I sat for 8 hours a day and no longer had time for the gym. I cooked huge meals (just like my mom did) not realizing I was serving enough on mine and my husband's plate to feed 3 people each. Needless to say, over time, I continued to gain weight. The little bit of exercise I would do to try to lose weight was futile because I wasn't adjusting my portion sizes. I thought the exercise alone would do the trick and was frustrated and annoyed by the whole process.
Add to this a very stressful marriage, a husband who wanted very much for me to lose weight because he was worried about his own image and how my poor physique reflected on him (his actual words). 13 years later we divorced...he left me for a 22 year old, skinny trophy type who he married and is extremely proud of. I didn't know it at the time, but it was the best gift a
nyone could have ever given me....in the end he ended up giving me back my life. Without knowing it I surrendered everything that I was and catered to him and his needs. It was a good experience in that I learned so much about what NOT taking care of your own needs will end up doing to you.
My husband's infidelity and my feelings of failure put me into a state of depression I feared I might never get out of. After 5 long years of therapy and a lot of hard work, I emerged....just as a beautiful butterfly emerges from what seems like certain death. I stayed single for 7 years, dating off and on and learning alot about men and how full of sh*t they can be. And, during that time, I tried many attempts at weight loss. Weight Watchers, Body for Life, Atkins, Calorie Counting, Vegan, etc. I was in my 3rd attempt at doing Body For Life when I decided to post vlogs on YouTube. I discovered a small group of BFLers who became my support system.
I met my current husband about that time, and my mother became ill as well. This changed my life completely. I decided to move back to my hometown to be closer to my mother and about a year and a half l
ater got married. My weight loss efforts took a backseat, with a couple of meager trys in that time period. Something pretty significant changed in that year and a half. I was with a man who accepted, and completely loved, me just as I was. There was no pressure to lose weight from him. There were no strings attached. It was amazing how liberating that was. I not only had a wonderful relationship with an amazing man, but I was still able to grow the individual person I was, am and will be. This opened a whole new way of seeing weight loss and health. It was no longer a neccessity for being accepted. It was my choice. MY choice.
I decided to take a good long look at how I was approaching weight loss, what worked in the past and why, what didn't and why not. After alot of research, trying some different methods and testing theories I came up with what I currently do now and have been very successful with so far. I am very excited about my journey ahead and have been amazed at how much has changed already. I want to use this blog to write my story...to talk about what lies ahead.
The method I am currently using to find my way back to good health is multi-faceted but simple in my mind. I eat clean. Which means my diet consists of "mostly" whole, unprocessed, natural, and as organic as possible, foods. I eat 5 to 6 small meals per day and am careful to limit sugars in all forms, organic or not. I eat mainly lean protein, whole grains/breads, fruit and vegetables and healthy oils. I started doing this and in one month lost about 2.8 pounds. Not bad, but felt .....slow. So I took a look at what I was doing and realized my portion sizes were pretty big. I was raised on large portions...that felt very normal to me. So, I decided to add Weight Watchers to my plan for better portion control. I still eat clean and adhere to my original diet, but now I assign points to all those foods and stay within my points range. I've lost another 15.4 pounds in the past 5 weeks....clearly adding Weight Watchers to my plan is working beautifully. I do have an treats but it's very occassional and I am very careful about the quality of the treat and still stay within my points range. Recently I've been increasing my activity, to include brisk walking, step aerobics and smaller break time walks and trips up and down our 3 flights of stairs at work. I also do isometric exercises while sitting at my desk doing data entry and anytime I'm by myself in the elevator I do tow raises or squats. I stretch and do a fair amount of floorwork at home as well. I don't have a set routine that I have to perform daily or weekly, I just simply find time in my day to get something in if I can.
I surround myself with support. I vlog on YouTube with The Weight Loss Diaries and I have a personal channel as well. I post on The Weight Loss Diaries Facebook page, blog on my Myspace Page and share my journey with all my family and friends. I stay accountable, willingly. I want to succeed and I give myself every opportunity to do so.
The other wonderful women I vlog with on The Weight Loss Diaries are a huge inspiration to me and we are all working toward a common goal, which unites us. We have decided to have a "meet-n-greet in 18 months (from July 2009) to celebrate our achievements. That gives us 18 months to reach toward our goals and possibly attain them. For me that means a 5.5 lb. loss every month until December 2010. What a wonderful way to ring in the new year ~ This has served as a catalyst for me. Dangling that huge carrot out in front of me like that has ignited a fire in me like I've never experienced. I'm hell bent on changing and achieving that goal. There is no looking back. There is no going back. Only forward....I want MORE. I will have more. This is the beginning of my story....
Before....260.8 lbs.
