Can You Say "Plateau"?

Weight: 321
Total Weight loss: 15.6 pounds

I've stayed pretty much the same all of the month of June.

And you know? I'm kind of OK with that. I'm proud that I have kept up with the positive changes I made in my life starting in May (oh heck, starting last January with a few big hiccups), and I know I will continue losing weight. For now I am happy that I have been able to maintain, even while having some positively poor eating days. That tells me that I am doing other things right, at least.

This morning I completed Week 5, Day 2 of C25K! I'm very proud of this; it was tough.

Run 5 minutes
Walk 3 minutes
Run 8 minutes (!)
Walk 3 minutes
Run 5 minutes

Plus the usual warm up and cool down. I gotta say that the first 5 minute run made me feel like I wasn't going to be able to finish. But I just kept talking myself through it, breaking up the already short chunks of time into even smaller ones, to make it easier psychologically. And it worked! I didn't go quite as fast overall as I did the day before (3.3mph average vs. 3.5mph), but I still really surprised myself. I went farther than the last time, so close to the two mile mark (1.87, to be exact). I would be so fantastic if I could run 2 miles in a half hour, let me tell you! I'll get there.

It's going to be a busy weekend; I've got all kinds of things going on, but I do want to fit in a plain walk tomorrow morning and Day 3 (20 minutes of running!) of C25K on Sunday. Aside from that I have a freelance design project to work on, paintings to make in my studio, and a family get-together on Sunday to celebrate Father's Day. It's going to whiz by, so I need to make the best of my time!

And hey, since I almost never post photos, here is one of me taken just moments ago. I think it is always nice to put a face to a name (or online persona, for that matter). HI!

Steady as She Goes

Well, I can't really complain too much about the state of the scale lately. I'm staying right in the 321 area, 321.4 today. Can't seem to break it, but then again my eating hasn't been the most stellar lately, either, so I do feel lucky.

I keep making these weight goals for myself (315, 315, 315... ha ha!), and I haven't been able to come close, so I think rather than focus so much on the numbers, I'm going to reset my focus on exercise and tracking food. Make sure I do both every single day, no matter what. Because really, my clothes are fitting better and I feel pretty good about things overall, and that is what is most important! Not to mention (ahem) that I've lost 15 pounds in a month and a half, and that is nothing to sneeze at for sure. Maybe my body (and my brain) is playing catch up?

This morning I dragged myself out of bed right at the alarm again, nice! I didn't feel so hot today, either, but went for a walk. Unlike yesterday, my body never really perked up. I told myself to just shoot for a 20-minute walk, as long as I did something. And that's pretty much how it went, 22 minutes total and just over a mile. It didn't feel like I was walking so slow, oh well! Just one of those days, I guess.

I did it. Good on me.

I'm aiming for a good eating day today, too. The last two days weren't so hot. For breakfast I am back to my yogurt/cereal/fruit combo and I picked myself up some fruit and a Kashi frozen meal for lunch. I just haven't been as prepared to eat well this week—the kitchen's been a mess, the coffers are not well stocked. It's much harder to do well when you are in a hurry and trying to just piece things together. That often ends up in, "Aw, screw it, let's just get take out." (or fast food) And you know the rest. That's what yesterday was like. McDonald's for breakfast, Burger King for lunch, pizza and wings for dinner. I mean, I made decent choices and ate OK portions for what I ate, but still: it's eating crap.

OK, well, today I have a pretty OK plan, though I do need to come up with something decent for dinner. Too bad it's raining; grilling out sounds awfully good! Back to the old drawing board...

A Close One

Phew, that was close!

So if you were with me yesterday, you know that I had a terrible eating day. Even after my last post, I ended up going home and eating even more crap. It was just one of those days, I guess.

I also got in almost two hours of yard work after dinner last night, and I got back on the C25K wagon this morning. The result, even after eating what was probably double my usual allotment of cals?

I lost .4 pounds. Halle-&%$#-lujah! Seriously, I'd never been so happy to see a wee loss like that before. I was completely prepared to gain at least two pounds.

I'm still kind of holding my breath for tomorrow, actually. This bloated feeling I've been having is driving me crazy and I bet anything it's contributing to this plateau I've been on. My water intake is always good, so it's not that, probably just the dreaded "female" stuff. So I am waiting this out and will just keep on keeping on, like I always say. It's OK, it's not a race.

But I have to tell you about my run this morning! Holy crap, it was incredible. I woke up feeling kind of crappy (food hangover, anyone?), but got right out of bed with the alarm, got suited up and out the door. As what always happens, I warmed right up and started to really enjoy myself almost immediately. Week 5 of C25K is when it starts to get a little more hard-core: today's workout was the following sequence sandwiched with the usual five-minute warm up and cool down walk. 5 minutes running, 3 minutes walking, 5 minutes running, 3 minutes walking, 5 minutes running. And I did just great! I think it is amazing how my legs don't bother me one bit compared to when I started walking back on May 1st. Not to mention... my speed is improving! I was usually going 3 mph or so, maybe 3.1 if I was lucky. Today, though? Try 3.5 mph! Positively zippy for this fatty. Seriously, I was pretty psyched. It probably wasn't until one of the last weeks the last time I tried C25K that I reached that speed, so I am obviously improving faster. (NOTE: I double checked this, and it turns out that I never got that speed until a month or so after completing C25K last year! Wahoo!)

I am sure that the hills I walked and ran at my dad's house has a lot to do with my improvement. After tackling that route, my neighborhood is a piece of cake. Sure, I was huffing and puffing pretty well this morning, but I was fine, you know? Now I am having visions of hitting 4mph by the time I finish C25K (four more weeks to go!). Who knows, maybe I'll be able to run 5K in 45 minutes or something outrageous like that!

...only to get home and tell C. about my accomplishment, when he replies, "Isn't that like walking speed? You're SLOW!" Like he didn't know that already. But screw it, I didn't let old grouchypants get me down. I am still so proud of what I did this morning, my head is in the clouds.

Some days are diamonds, some days are stone. Today is definitely the former!

Oh No.

I am already way over on my calories and there is still dinner to eat. This is disappointing at best, especially since this includes the calories subtracted for my anticipated yardwork tonight.

See, turning to food for comfort does not make things better, it makes things worse! How many times do I have to "learn" this?

I take comfort that this is just one day of many, but it still sucks. Oh well.

Now to decide whether to eat a normal dinner, or to try to not eat anything else at all. What would YOU do?

Tippy Toe 500

My friend Tippy Toe has come up with a brilliant idea: The Tippy Toe 500.

It includes 100 push-ups,

200 squats,

and 200 sit ups.

I think I may have to go for it! It'll take me two years or something, but I will give it a shot.

Thanks, Tippy Toe!

The Poutlet

Grr. I'm back up to 321.6 this morning.

Though I still have to enter my dinner from yesterday (we ate at a friend's house whose whole family is on a diet), I am pretty sure I was A-OK on the eating front. It is true that I had no exercise yesterday, and it is true that I had Subway yesterday for lunch, and even more true that I was feeling very bloated yesterday. I am hoping, therefore, that this is just a case of water retention.

Oh, and not to mention that I still have my period! It's been over two weeks now! While this is very unusual indeed, I have had this happen to me before. Don't worry, I have a doctor's appointment at the end of the month and will mention the epic period. It's not been heavy at all since I returned from NH, a wee bit really, but enough that I still am chained to feminine hygiene products. No fun. So, who knows what kind of havoc this anomaly is wreaking on my weight loss efforts.

That said, I was kind of pissed off this morning and guess how I dealt with it? That's right, a trip to Dunkin' Donuts. Total damage: a small strawberry coolata and two donuts. Plus, I nommed on some coffee cake my mom sent me home with on Sunday. I know I was thinking it might be good to shake up my breakfast routine a bit, but I certainly didn't have this in mind. It was just plain emotional reaction, totally dumb.

And things are fine at home now, so I get through all that crap only to stumble on something as ridiculous as a little water retention. I know better than that.

Well, only one thing to do and that is track the food and try to do better for the rest of the day. At least later I'll be mowing the lawn and doing a little gardening.

I really appreciate having this blog as an outlet (I almost typed "poutlet"! Ha ha! That too) for times like this. Having just written about all this makes me feel much better, and certainly more rational. Thanks for reading. That is nice, too.

UPDATE: Ooooh yeah, did I ever go over on the sodium intake yesterday! I think that I'm going to have to say sayonara to my old pal Subway. It's just not worth it anymore. I'll make my own roast beef sandwich. I was slightly over on the cals, but not almost two pounds' worth. Oh well. Today's a new day, filled with yardwork.

Still Sub, Just

After a wonderful afternoon and evening at my cousin's for a belated birthday celebration, I am up just a wee bit this morning. But still under 320, which is thrilling, I admit it! Two days in a row, sub-320, awesome!

As far as eating goes yesterday, I could have done better (like maybe having one hotdog instead of two, say?), but I could have done much worse, too. The best part was just being with my family and enjoying their company—not to mention admiring and coveting much of my cousin Marianne's many gardens! That surely burned all sorts of calories right there.

The morning started off in a very stressful way (related to our trashy, young next door neighbors) and so I wasn't able to go out for a run. I need to get started on Week 5 of C25K already! It's also been quite a while since I've visited the gym, for that matter. I'll have to see how things go at home... sometimes, you just can't make the time because other things really need your utmost attention. We're are kind of in crisis mode at home, actually, so I am just trying to keep myself together and ride out the storm (if that is even possible). I could do a lot of good thoughts sent my way if you can spare some!

Back at my desk at work, I just keep drinking my water, tracking my food, and keep on keeping on. Sometimes, it's all you can do.

Sub-320

Hooray! I lost two pounds from yesterday, which puts me at 318.8. Yay! This is very exciting, and hopefully it will stick this time.

Yesterday's hard work in the garden (four hours' worth!) paid off, as did drinking lots of water, as did tracking my food and keeping the cals just under 2200. There's no magic there, just diligence and focus. Maybe I should get too excited, but I'd like to set my goal this week to reach 315 pounds. That's what I'd like to see by Friday, my "official" weigh-in day.

I had a big breakfast this morning: my usual cereal and yogurt with berries, but also three of the dinner rolls I made last night (about 150 cals each, and very yummy!). I probably could have just done with two, or even one, but I don't plan to eat lunch today just for the way the day is planned. Dinner is going to be a cookout affair at my cousin's as a belated birthday party for me and her daughter, which should be OK. It'll probably be hotdogs et al, plus of course birthday cake-like items for dessert. I figure if I have a little bit here, a little bit there, I'll still be able to a) enjoy myself and indulge a little and b) still stay on track. It's all about balance, people!

Tomorrow is back to work for me. One thing I like about that is getting back into a regimen, if only for my eating. I will miss being with C. and the cats all the time, and I will miss hanging out in the gardens all the time. I'm having thoughts about making some professional changes in my life (again!), but that'll be a story for another time. Vacations really make you think. Some challenges I will be facing include dinner at a friend's house tomorrow (though he and his family are dieting, so that shouldn't be too hard), at least one and potentially more lunches out (one a meeting, one maybe for continued birthday celebrations?). But, I've been through that before and done just fine, so I guess I shouldn't worry too much. Just stuff to be mindful of.

Anyway, I'm looking forward to another good week. A better week, even!

Back on Track

I showed a wee loss this morning: 320.8. Can't seem to break the 320 barrier again! Maybe tomorrow.

It's obvious that tracking my food really is key to my success here. It's easy to do and there is no reason why I should take a break from it, even if I am on vacation. I'll say it again, too, that blogging almost daily has really, really helped me stay accountable and focused. See, computers are good for something!

Today I see myself in the garden until it rains (if it does), and then some housework? I hate to admit it, but we've really let the house go the past few weeks. This morning I did a cursory wash of the bathroom sink and toilet, and that was good. A wee dusting, some sweeping, tidying up the kitchen, maybe a vacuum upstairs... wouldn't take much effort to do, and would be some exercise if I exert myself enough. Two birds with one stone.

I'm pretty excited for the rest of month and where I may find myself by the time July rolls around. Presumably I'll be firmly ensconced in the 310s...

Making Good Choices

Whether planned or by chance, making good choices makes me feel, well, good. Remember how I told you earlier that I was going to use my Coldstone Creamery coupon to get my free birthday ice cream today? Well, I did, but to my surprise when I went to enter it into my Daily Plate account, I found out that my choice only amounted to about 420 calories! Not shabby for a full-on, honest-to-god birthday treat. I had a "like it" sized raspberry sorbet with two mix-ins: chocolate brownie and fudge. It was delicious and very satisfying in both taste and size. The old me might have paid extra for the next size up only to realize that it was really too much, but would eat it anyway. This was a perfect treat for me.

I did track all my food today and came in on the low side, surprisingly enough. But, I got no exercise (except for running around a good portion of the day—being a guest artist at Starlight, an art program from developmentally disabled adults; getting my ice cream; getting my license renewed and upgraded to an "enhanced" license that will get me into Canada, Mexico, and the Carribbean) and drank NO water at all! I had a few glasses of diet soda. I've been having them here and there, and I don't know... I'm not sure why. I'm not making a big deal out of it but I will say that I do prefer getting through a day knowing that I didn't drink it. It's just nasty stuff. I'm just really anti-artificial sweetener these days; I really would rather eat less of a food made with real sugar and fat. I'm not into fat-free or even low-fat cheese. 2% milk is fine, but that is where I draw the line. I know many of you would disagree with this or think I am crazy, but that's just what works for me.

We had Chinese take-out for dinner, which may spell trouble with bloating on the scale tomorrow. But, whatever! I feel that today was a successful day in that I did what I set out to do: make more conscious choices again, and track my food intake. Maybe I'll go get myself some water and count that as a good measure, too.