Plateau

Last week- 190.0

This week- 190.8

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Gained 0.8

GgggRrrrrr

Frustrations and Triumphs

I guess I didn't try hard enough last week, I had a couple of days when I didn't eat enough and a couple of days when I ate too much. So I guess it makes total sense that I gained more than half a pound (really not too much) because my body thought it was starving and then the next day I gave it extra and so it saved everything it could. I will do better this week, and hopefully, I will finally break the 190 barrier, if I don't I think I will cry.

On a different note, I did something amazing this week. I ran a 5k on Saturday, and I ran the entire race, no walking. We arrived at the race location at 7:30, and as I got out of the car I realized that I didn't have my Ipod, I was a little scared because I had trained with the Ipod, specifically with songs that would help me keep my pace. I had been running the course for 2 weeks and I had yet to finish without walking. I was very comfortable running at about a 4.3 mph pace and I was sure I would be able to run the entire race......until I lost the Ipod. I have a pretty good memory for music and so as I started I just sang the songs to myself, eventually I felt like I had the beat/pace down pretty well and I felt really good running. I finished in 41 min 45 seconds. The course is actually 3.5 miles long and I did the math after I got home, I ran close to a 5 mph pace! I was amazed. When I went out to run this morning I chose a new song, one with a faster beat and sure enough my first mile was exactly 12 minutes, which for me is great.

So this week was a week of Triumphs and Frustrations. I can deal with that. I am going to beat this plateau in weight and continue on my quest for health and weight loss. I am going to be fine, even if I do end up crying a little.

So Close!

Last Week- 191.6

This Week- 190.0

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Total Lost- 1.6 pounds

I had hoped to break the 190 barrier, but looks like my body wanted to sit on the fence for a little bit. But hey, I am still pretty happy. I lost 1.6 pounds this week. I feel good. I am going to run a 5k this Saturday and I am 99% sure that I will be able to run the entire thing! That is amazing to me, I am going to be really proud and I am pretty sure that I am going to tell you all about it next Monday. Until then, Wish me Luck!

One Year, One Goal

I set a goal this weekend, or at least I verbalized what I have been thinking in my head for a while. My goal is to get to 140 pounds in the next year. After that my goal will be maintaining a healthy weight for the rest of my life.

I finally verbalized this goal when my sister was telling me about her recent experiences with weight loss. She mentioned that her body seems to have plateaued at 168 pounds, it likes it there, doesn't want to budge.

I didn't say it out loud but I am afraid that my body likes to weight 202 pounds, that is were it seemed to like to stay all last year. Then in October 2008 I decided that I was not OK with that number and that things had to change, and for a while they did, I think I lost 10 pounds pretty quickly, but then the holidays came and in January I found myself right back at 202. I tried weight loss shakes, they were yummy, I lost weight but then lost interest and was on my way back up to 202 when I decided, once again, that I had to do something. This time, that something is much cheaper, and much simpler. I am counting my calories and exercising. That is it. (Remember all of this was in my head)

I then told her I completely understood what it was like to have your body like a certain weight, and want to stay there. I also told her that my goal was to get down to 140 and that in the past month or so I had lost 5 pounds. She asked me how much more I needed to lose. "Oh, about 50 pounds" was the answer that so easily came out of my mouth. I started doing the math in my head- that is 25% of my body! Then my sister asked if I was willing to put some money behind my goal. "What, Like a bet?" No, not like a bet, she asked me if I had ever heard of the HCG diet. I have. I have a friend who recently lost 50 pounds using HCG. But I just don't know about taking anything, or buying anything. The fact is that losing weight and being healthy is pretty simple, but it is also quite hard. It's a double edged sword.

I know people who used phen-fen, who now have to visit a cardiologist ever year or so to make sure they don't have heart damage. This is something that was prescribed to them by doctors. They lost weight, but then gained it back. Because of that situation I am really leery about taking things to help me lose weight. And so, for now, I won't.

I told my sister that I was going to give myself a year to lose that pesky 50 pounds, and if at the end of the year I was struggling I would probably talk to my Doctor, get some advice- who knows, I could have Poly cystic Ovarian Syndrome or something like that that makes it hard to loose weight, if after that year my doctors says "You know, try this, it will help you get the success you are looking for" then maybe I will try it.

But for now, it is just me, Livestrong.com's MyPlate- to help me count the calories, and my trusty New Balance Shoes. Give us a year, and we will change my life.

OK, so I ate a brownie...or two

Last week- 193.8

This week- 191.6

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Total Lost- 2.2!

That is right, 2.2 pounds! YEAH! I was kind of scared. This past week has been hard. The baby has been sick, and I have been dealing with the lovely gift Mother Nature likes to bestow upon me every few weeks. I didn't exercise like I should have, in fact the only days last week that I got any exercise were Monday and Saturday. But I did track my food, I counted those calories (most days, the day of the brownies I didn't bother) and I did it, I lost weight! YEAH ME!

Now, lets see if I can keep it going. Hopefully next Monday I will discover that I have I have passed the 190 mark- going the right way this time....

Slow and Steady

In two weeks I am going to run a 5k. I hope to be able to completely run it, but if I can keep the walking to less than a quarter mile, I will be happy. I usually run on the treadmill, but I know, for my body, there is a huge difference between treadmill running and street running. Basically, I believe that my treadmill has an anti-gravity function, and I believe it is always on.

Anti-gravity? Yes. Why would I believe this? Because I can run 1 or 2 miles on the treadmill without a problem and then after a little walk break I can run another mile or 2. But the moment I step outside and try to run, well, it is almost like I am being sucked into the ground, it is hard to move, I guess it would be like running while wearing cement shoes. The only way I can explain this is Gravity. Gravity is pulling harder on me.....well that or the street doesn't move like the deck of my treadmill does.

So, back to the 5k. Knowing that this 5k is going to be run outside, where gravity lurks, I decided that I would practice. On Saturday I left my sweet baby and husband to care for each other and drove down to the race site. And I ran. Outside. It really wasn't too bad. I have no idea how long it took me, I figure it was somewhere around 50 minutes, which is pretty good considering that I walked quite a bit of it. Hey, that gravity is hard to deal with sometimes. I used MapMyRun.com to figure out how far I walked and ran, I walked about a mile of the 3.4 mile course. Yes, for some strange reason this 5k is a little more than 5 kilometers.

I felt pretty good about my run and I decided that I would run the route three times a week for the next two weeks, hoping that the practice will pay off and I will be able to finish the 5k before the walkers do.

This morning I borrowed a friends running stroller and the 17 month-old 25 pound boy of mine took off on our very own 5k. I wasn't sure how it would go, after all, I was going to be pushing 30 pounds in front of me this time, but I did great. This time I only walked 1/2 a mile! I realized that the last mile I was running really slow. I am pretty sure someone walking moderately fast could have passed me. I laughed at myself. I probably looked pretty silly, but I didn't let that get me down. I decided that Slow and Steady Wins the Race, especially if the race is against yourself.

I know that there will be people, who have amazing anti gravity shoes and clothing, who will finish the 5k in 25 minutes, maybe even less, but I am not competing against them, I am competing against myself and I don't care if I run slowly, as long as I keep running, I will win.

I think that this is true about my weight loss as well. Slow and Steady will help me. I am pretty sure I have heard that the faster you lose weight, the easier it is to gain back. So I have set to goal to lose between 2 & 3 pounds per week. At this pace it will take me 25 to 30 weeks to lose the weight I need to lose. Slow and Steady, it may take longer, I may only lose a pound per week, but as long as I am losing, as long as I am becoming more healthy, I am winning. I am in a race with myself and I like my odds.

Something Gained

Last Week- 192.8

This Week- 193.8

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+1.0

Yes, I gained a pound, but I am OK with that. After all, we did go on a short vacation, and so basically I was able to maintain, and that is pretty good.

Not too Shabby

We went on vacation, and I didn't let it all go by the wayside. Yes I did eat way too many treats while I spent 13 or 14 hours in the car, and I did enjoy myself at the yummy buffet at the Family party on Sunday afternoon, but I also exercised each day. And in the end I was able to pretty much maintain my weight, gaining just 1 pound, it could have been much much worse. I am pleased with this past week.

Vacations are hard for those of us who are trying to lose weight, mostly because you are not at home. You are in someone elses house, with their food and their secret snacks (got to love the giant bag of M&M's in the cupboard) . And of course, at parties, there are the deserts, so many yummy deserts, and I did have a few of those.

On Friday and Monday I spent 40 minutes walking with our friend and host for the trip. On Saturday I tried to run my very own 5k. I say tried to run because I picked a pretty hilly route and didn't quite make it up each hill, but once I got to the top I would start running again. I also didn't quite get the distance right, either that or I ran really fast, finishing the 5k 8 minutes faster than I ever have before...yeah, I probably just got the distance wrong, I don't think I can run that fast.

But all in all, I am happy. I could have easily gained 5 pounds. Now that we are home I am starting to really focus on preparing for a real 5k at the end of the month, and I also and happy to be able to use the Daily Plate on livestrong.com. I have high hopes for next weeks weigh in.

Small Triumphs

Last week- 195.4

This week- 192.8

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Total loss 2.6 Pounds

I am very happy with 2.6 especially as that was my goal! 2.5 per week. I really only worked out twice this week on the treadmill, but I had a very busy week full of walking to the park and chasing kids around, so I guess it is true that if you have an active day, you burn calories. Hopefully I can keep up the weight loss this week- we are going out of town......in the past if I was dieting and going out of town I would ditch the diet while we are gone, but I am going to try my very best to stay true to my goals. So, check back next week to see how I did.

Caloric Confusion

If you are like me and have no Idea how many calories are in the things you eat, and have no desire to carry around a little book or pieces of paper that tell you how many calories the foods have, then I have a treat for you. It is called MyPlate and it is found on livestrong.com. Last Monday I was completely confused about Calories and how many I needed to eat in order to avoid starving my body and still be able to lose weight, and then I remembered Livestrong.com. My sister told me about it a few months ago and I thought is was cool, but now I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE it! You can search for what you eat, tell it how much of it you ate, and it will tell you what your daily caloric intake was, as well as the percentages of Carbs, Fats and Proteins you have eaten that day. So far, 99% of the time, I have been able to find things I eat, and not just the ingredients but the finished products, like Recipezaar's Flourless Peanut Butter Cookies and Tatertot Casserole! This has made it so easy to track my food, it has become my computerized food diary- and if I need to show my doctor, I can just print it off and take it in to her office.

There is one part of the MyPlate that has confused me this week. You can tell the program how much weight you want to lose each week, it takes into account your height and current weight, and then sets a caloric goal for you. When you enter foods it subtracts them from your goal and tells you how much more you can eat that day. It also has a section where you can enter your exercises for the day.....my confusion comes from the fact that it adds however many calories you burned back into your Goal for the day. For example, if I had 600 calories left for the day and I entered that I had burned 500 calories on the treadmill, my caloric goal would go up to 11oo. And that got me wondering, do I need to take in more calories when I burn a lot of calories, to avoid my body feeling like I am starving it, when you are loosing weight the last thing you want is for your body to think that it needs to save ever calorie you eat, that just sucks.

So over the next few weeks I am going to do an experiment. I will try it both ways. I will eat only the original caloric goal for a week or two, and then I will eat the original goal, plus the extra calories that I burned during my work out. I think that I will lose weight either way, but I am interested in losing weight in a way that my body is happy and comfortable with, so that I won't just gain it back next year.

I think that I will use MyPlate for a long time, especially when I am done losing and trying my best to maintain, because I can set my goal to maintain my weight and it will continue to do the same things, tell me how much I can eat and track how well I do each day.