Monthly review...

It's been one month since I decided to change my life - and what a month.  I have found this first month difficult because I miss the foods that I used to eat.  And being a procrastinator, I hate to be accountable - however...the results are in.

I have lost 8.2 lbs so far and 9.5 inches in total.  Not bad considering that I have been sick off and on throughout the month.  This past week, I have been on bed rest but still tried to make healthy choices.  But with no real interest in food, I have had no real cravings.

I have set up new activity targets and aim to walk 140000 steps in February.  Seeing as how I have 2 days in bed, I will have to work hard to catch up.  I liked taking my measurements this morning and seeing that I have lost inches - that was a nice surprise.

Can't wait until next month!

Way to splurge...

This weekend I did not follow my plan at all!  I went out for supper during the week and not only had one dessert at lunch - but I also had cheesecake at supper!

This weekend was another occasion to derail my efforts - Date Night.  Every girl's dream, right?  But every dieter's nightmare.  My DH was so sweet taking me out to dinner and a movie - I chose healthier choices - than he did - but nothing like I usually have at home.  And at the movies - popcorn - no butter drizzled over the top  - and a small size one.  But the Glosette raisins did not help.

Still I am down 0.4 - almost back to my week 3 total.  I stayed on track with the exercise - going on the bike every day for 20 minutes.  Tonight it bumps up to 25 minutes - yikes!  And the steps per day were over 5000 only once - but they were in the high 4000's.  It's a start.

I am going to keep on from here - focusing on the portion control and exercise rather than exclusion of foods.  I have been sick off an on - today I am very ill.  Fever and sore throat - tired and not hungry.  But I am eating according to meal plan so I kick this cold quickly.

Hope the scale rebounds more next week...

Up by .6 - oops

Ok - so my third week was not a successful as my first two weeks.  Looking back, I think that I need to encorporate the exercise more than I have been doing.  I am only at 15 minutes per day - but some days, I have not exercised at all.

So I am committing to getting on the bike for at least 20 minutes every day this week.  And I am setting a step goal for 5000 per day - no exceptions.

It will be hard for me - but I want to be under the 270 lb mark by next week.  I will stay focused and on track - I have to if I want to meet my goals.

I thought I was better this weekend - I kept busy and didn't really get cravings or hunger pains at all.  So I am surprised that I haven't lost this week.  Oh well, not looking back - moving on from here.

Keep you posted!

Weekends...so hard to stay on track

This weekend was a difficult one!  I found it very hard to stay on track, especially in planning meals for the family.  Traditionally, we have "special" meals - meals requiring more preparation, more effort and usually more calories.  Lasagne, homemade mac and cheese, and pizzas loaded with toppings are the family favourites.

Since I embarked on this lifestyle change, I have tried to find unique ways to keep the meals similiar to my family's liking - but cutting out the fat and unnecessary calories.  It has been quite a challenge.

The other big obstacle is weekend evenings!  My old habits were to watch a couple of movies each weekend, complete with "movie snacks" - usually chips, cheesies and chocolate!  No movie was complete without the chocolate.

This weekend was killer in that regard.  Nearly every commercial on TV was advertising some new brownie, ice cream or soft drink.  I was practically salivating!  The only way to win the battle was to throw a DVD in to stop the advertisements.  And I worked on my card making for the evening while I watched the movie.

So I won that tiny battle...but god I miss my old habits sometimes. 

First weigh-in!

I lost 3.6 lbs!  I am so happy that I did not let my red team down.

This weekend was hard to track food - I just practiced portion control - only having one serving forgetting about the calories for now.  I enjoyed meals with my family, eating what they ate but adjusting for portion, condiments, etc.

I also was lax about the exercise this weekend - not structured exercise anyway.  I cleaned the house like crazy this weekend - and I feel that if I had worn the pedometer, it would have shown the results.

This morning was busy - no walk because of the rain - but I got my new indoor bike and we will assemble it tonight.  I am looking forward to increasing my activity level so I can see if that increases the weight loss!

Day 4 - horrible day

Do you ever feel that all the elements combine to give you a horrible day?  I mean, truly horrible?  Day 4 started off badly, continued to be ghastly and ended up with me going to bed to end the vicious day! 

I slept in Thursday morning, missing the very tiny window of time I have to take a morning walk.  I ran around getting ready for work - but was still late.  I had a very disappointing day at work - everything I touch was wrong.  And in trying to get everything done, I was too pre-occupied to eat - in fact the very thought of food made me nauseous.

So once home, I tried to brush off the bad day and get back on track.  We had a casserole for supper (hard to count the calories, fat, protein on that!) so I portion controled.  But the complete misery of a day got to me and I was into the President's Choice Peppermint Chocolate crackle ice cream.  It tasted delicious and for a moment, I was truly happy.  But as all sugar rushes do, it came to a crashing halt as guilt arrived to break up the party.

I am trying to lose weight in a challenge and am on a team - so to binge on Day 4 is pretty pathetic.  But after a quick pep talk from one wonderful team-mate, H, I felt better.  Not 100 % - but good enough to admit defeat and move on.

Maybe Friday will be better for me...I certainly hope so

Day 3 - Slow and steady

Day 3 - I have survived another 6 am morning walk - this time I didn't cry on my way home.  It hurt but not enough to cry - that's good.  The moon was a pleasant companion today - I was not as jittery in the dark.

I have found the food portions more than adequate - I am not sure that I am eating enough fruits and veg - but right now I am concentrating on eating regularly.  Too often I find myself not hungry for long stretches at a time - then I binge - with the wrong foods.  I have planned out when I am eating - what I am eating, etc so there will be no surprise binges.

I started making myself get up during my work day to walk the corrider - twice in the morning and once this afternoon.  I am not sure if this will really increase my total steps taken, but it's a start to get me moving.  I want to eventually be getting up once per hour but that will come.

I am ok with the water consumption - never any problems with that - I like water.  I do not like the reverse osmosis water at work - so I bring my own spring water - or dump a Crystal light in the work H2O.  The Crystal light keeps the cravings away - I usually finish my day with a bottle of the stuff!  Love the Strawberry Kiwi.

I like that I seem to have a bit more energy at night.  With our new TIVO, I am not sitting in front of the TV during "danger time" when every commercial shows a brownie sundae (my weakness).  If I tape my shows, I can fast forward thru all the suggestive propaganda - like you are happier with a Big Mac!

That's all for now...gotta run...night out with the girls.  Keeps me from eatin'.

Day 2

Today I started my walk at 6 am.  It was still dark out and the moon was high in the sky.  I didn't bring my tunes today - I wanted to be alert if anyone tried to sneak up on me...yes a bit paranoid but I hate walking alone.  Tomorrow I am bringing my dog.

My first day was not horrible - I stuck to my food plan - and was not hungry at all.  But I am still getting over my flu and find food uninteresting right now.  That will change I am sure.

I was sore after my walk today but the muscles need to get kicked into gear after a year of inactivity.  I am wearing the pedometer today all day to see how many steps I actually walk.

The rest of this week will be the real test - back at work today and have to get back into the work routine.  I just hope I have energy after supper for another walk with the pups.

Day one - the beginning

Ok - Jan 1 - the start of my journey.  I have started these journies before - always with disappointing results, backslides and more pounds added to my frame.

Today I have decided that the weight on my scale will be the heaviest that I will ever be.  I will never see 277 again!  Seeing it in print is scary but necessary.

I am participating in a weight loss challenge with my online friends and I will not let my team down.  I vow to exercise daily - slowly at first - increasing as my injuries will allow.

My injuries - another reason that I need to start this journey - my legs and more particularly, my knees are hurting constantly.  I think this is because my small frame can not take the large amount of weight I am carrying.

My first attempt at exercise was a walk around my block - 15 minutes - 1414 steps - I was exhausted.  But I did not quit, did not stop until I got home.  Tomorrow I hope that it hurts less - and that I have more energy throughout the day.

But tomorrow is another day...