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Monday, June 29, 2015

It moved!


After seeing the same weight on the scale for four Sundays in a row, it was nice to see a different number finally.   Yesterday,  the scale finally moved and in the right direction at that.  I lost four pounds.  It's good to know that I am like a turtle rather than a rock.

The number of maximum calories I should consume daily for weight loss remains a mystery.  My metabolism is slow due to many reasons (thyroid, diabetes, sedentary lifestyle, etc.).  For the last couple of months I have been aiming for a max 1800 calories per day.  I may try to lower that this week.  Still being close to 400 lbs, I can't imagine eating as few as 1200-1400 calories.  Who knows, maybe it will come to that.  I know from experience  that more calories is not the answer for me.

If I were creating a balance sheet of my actions lately, here are some of the positives and negatives it would contain.

Positives
  • I have been tracking via MyFitnessPal every bite for the last 38 days
  • I have been eating far less take-out food
  • I have been increasing my average steps/day

Negatives 
  • I have not been meal planning as often as I would like
  • I am still having sugary snacks in the evening
  • My intake of vegetables has decreased the last two weeks

With the increase in movement, eating more at home and less food consumed overall I am starting to feel as if I have more energy and some aches and pains are decreasing.  Don't get me wrong, at 383 pounds I am still pretty much a sore slug, but I'm doing better.  Yesterday, I went to the movie theater.  It had been about two years or more since the last time I went.  With the extra energy, I felt I could do the steps and wanted to work on my fear of being in public.  I'm a work in progress and look forward to feeling even better and doing more stuff as I continue to move and lose.

In case you don't live in the Pacific Northwest or track the weather, we are having some pretty darn nice days for June.  Normally, summer doesn't start in Seattle until July 5th.  This year, June has been unusually dry and warm compared to the last 19 years I've lived here.  While my husband, sister and brother-in-law might complain it is too warm for them, all I can say is "Sweeeeeet"!   Three to five years ago, my body changed somehow (thyroid??) and I seem to always be cold.  At close to four hundred pounds, you might think I sweat all the time.  I used to.  My husband, sister and brother-in-law do.  I don't .  For my husband's comfort, we have the air conditioner set at 69 degrees.  This means you will find him in shorts while I am in sweats , two shirts and under a heavy blanket and still shivering.  With the temps and dry weather, I can now step outside for a few minutes to warm up every now and then.  I'm sure it won't last forever, but I am enjoying every.single.dry.warm.day!!

Tonight, my husband is trying a new recipe for grilled fajitas.  I'm looking forward to trying them and sitting outside while he grills.  That's all I have for now.  I think I will head outside to enjoy the weather and start doing some meal planning for the week.  I especially need to start thinking about the three day weekend and make plans so that we don't overeat.  What are your plans?  Quiet time at home, camping or a barbecue with family or friends? 

Thanks for stopping by,
Tammy

Monday, June 8, 2015

No gain or loss


Stepping on the scale yesterday, I wasn't sure what I would see.  I knew with family arriving in town on Thursday, that the weekend would have it's share of eating challenges.  As I mentioned in my last post, I was allowing myself to go over my calories but planned to eat in moderation rather than a free-for-all.  I think I ate about as I expected.  I was proud that I turned down two dining out situations.  I had plenty of other opportunities to visit and spend good quality time with my family.  The result is that I neither gained or lost any weight last week.  Well, I lost a couple of ounces.  This go around, I am rounding up to the nearest pound, so a big zero.  I am fine with that and happy it wasn't a gain.  Not that I think I ate enough to warrant a gain, I didn't. 

Some things I wish I would have done better last week include:
  • Stick to the plan
  • Drink more water
  • Eat more vegetables

Each night I plan out the next day's meals, but last week I found myself not always sticking to the plan.  I would make substitutions and as a result I was eating less vegetables.  This week I plan to  make a plan and stick to it.  Also, I wasn't drinking enough water especially for all the sodium I was consuming and the time spent outdoors in the heat. 

Speaking of the heat, I don't normally spend that much time outside and I have a fair complexion.  Oh, I bet you already know where I am going with this.  Yes, I got sunburned.  Since I was mostly covered up, only the lower three inches of my arms, face and head were burnt.  This happened at my nephew's party last year too.  Let me tell  you what, I have learned my lesson.  My scalp hurts too darn much to let this happen a third year in a row.  From now on, I will wear a hat, use an umbrella or take some other precaution. 

Last week was a busy week and not our normal.  From all the work cleaning and preparing the house, hosting a couple of game nights, the barbecue and other family get-togethers kept me on my feet more than usual.  It was nice to rest some today.  I enjoyed having the family in town and spending time with all of them, but getting back on schedule and focusing my energy on getting healthy will be nice too.

Thanks for stopping by!
Tammy

Monday, June 1, 2015

Last week was a good week


The ending of my post from last Monday included these statements:
  • Each night this week, I will plan the next days meals. 
  • I will track every bite via MFP. 
  • I will start some exercise, no matter how little it may be. 
  • This will be a good week.

I am happy and proud to report that all of these goals were accomplished.  Planning and tracking takes time.  Since I am not in the habit of planning meals, it probably took more time than needed.  I'm hoping that after I continue this for a few weeks and have more ideas of what I want to eat, the planning part will take less time.  Last week I only ate two meals not prepared at home and both were from McDonald's.  This is a huge improvement over my normal previous eating habits.  The amount of exercise last week was minimal, but compared to previous weeks and months where I had no intentional exercise, I consider this goal met as well. 

The result of planning and tracking my meals, eating at home and exercising was reflected by my weigh-in yesterday.  I lost four pounds last week!  My weight is now at 387 pounds.  The more distance I can add from the 400 pound mark, the better.  It feels good to finally be moving in the right direction.  I will confess that I am worried about whether I can keep it up.  This is something I will be talking about with my diet coach.  I've already filled him in on some of my history so that he can be aware of my habits and behaviors.

This week will be challenging.  Well, mostly Friday and the weekend will present the challenging part.  My nephew is turning six on Monday and family will be coming to town to celebrate.  My mother and favorite aunt arrive Thursday night and my father and step-mom will  arrive Friday.  There will be a barbecue and cake on Saturday, at least one or two meals out, and game night snacks.  Eating out will be the most difficult part for me to control.  My goal for the weekend will be moderation.  I am not going to stress out over food.  If I am over my calories one or two days, I will live with it.  I still plan to be cautious so I don't plan on any crazy over indulging.  I will enjoy my time with family and concentrate less on the food.  The days leading up to the weekend, I will stay on track and do all of the things that helped me last week (planning, tracking, exercise).

Thanks for stopping by,
Tammy