28th Weigh In

I don't think of myself as having a busy social life. My husband and I often kid each other about coming home from somewhere at a time that once signaled the start of an evening. I've realized the past few weeks that we are busy, but as a retired couple, the busyness begins earlier in the day and often brings surprises that weren't on the calendar.

Today is December 15th. That means we've add holiday shopping and some holiday parties, lunches and dinners into the mix. I continue to do well with my weight loss, even on the occasions when I don't know what the points are in what I am consuming. I try to make good choices and then let it go. I don't berate myself if I find out after the fact that something was much higher in points than I would have guessed, nor do I fall into the "what the hell, I've already messed up for the day" mind set that leads to conscious over indulging. The big reason continues to be how good I am feeling. Not just pleased with a successful weight loss, but physically good. What has been temptations in the past (gooey desserts, creamy after dinner drinks, cookies of all sorts all day long) are simply not worth the trade off of feeling this good.

I am not saying I haven't had any of those things, but just as I have always been able to take alcohol or leave it, the foods that used to torment me are now in that category too. A small piece of something, maybe only a taste, is enough. I realize when I am full, when I am truly hungry and that most of the time I am in a happy middle.

Going back to the alcohol reference, I like beer. I like the taste of it. Same with Scotch and a few creamy drinks such as White Russians and Mudslides. I never drank any of those drinks to get a buzz. I never needed to drink (that is a separate issue that some people face and not when I am addressing here) and often chose not to have any alcohol because the situation didn't seem appropriate to me, such as driving somewhere, being in charge of children, etc.  I am plagued by sinus headaches that are beyond my control, often brought on by weather changes. Beer and wine can cause me to have histamine headaches. Some days I just know not to have beer or wine because of the likelihood of that happening.

Why people continue to do things that are detrimental to their health and well being is way too large a topic for me to tackle. I can't speak for anyone else as to the why. What I can say is that Weight Watchers works. If one leader isn't a good match for you, try another. If you really want to change habits, and this applies to changes beyond what you eat, you must commit and keep trying. The turning point for me was realizing how good I was beginning to feel. Maybe for someone else it will be getting off of medication or buying smaller clothes.

I am now down 45.9 pounds. How many years did I spend thinking "next Monday" would be the day to start a new diet? This isn't a diet. This is my life. I don't feel deprived. I can't eat garlic any longer for reasons that have nothing to do with WW. That doesn't make me feel deprived, so why should counting points and staying within a range make me feel deprived? So much of this is mind set.

Onward and downward!

27 weeks and still losing!

Mid-week, we went to dinner with friends who are leaving Michigan soon for the warmth of Florida. The entree wasn't a bad choice point-wise but I don't have any idea what the points were in the lobster bisque. It was wonderful and worth whatever the value. I also had two drinks, Scotch, but no dessert.

Saturday was our neighborhood holiday party. It began many years ago as a true progressive dinner but soon we had too many households involved. We now have people volunteer to host, usually no more than 5 homes, and food is abundant. People not hosting bring food to the host homes just in case an army stops by that needs feeding. 

The party began at 7:00. I decided to eat a normal dinner at 5:30. It isn't just following WW that made me want to avoid most of the typical party fare, it is that many of those foods don't agree with my digestion now. Part of it could be age, but I suspect that my body prefers the way I have been eating for six months and "junk", no matter how tasty on the tongue, is going to play havoc with human machinery.

I had three Lil' Smokies (sausages) that were wrapped in bacon and baked with brown sugar; two alcoholic drinks, and close to 3/4 of a 2 liter bottle of caffeine free diet Coke. That was probably my big mistake. I still drink diet Coke occasionally, but usually from McDonald's, not bottled. Is one better than the other? I doubt it, but fountain drinks seem less carbonated to me.

We had to be up and out of the house early on Sunday morning so I was functioning on 4.5 hours of sleep and not feeling 100%. There was no hangover, there wasn't a food coma, I think I was just plain tired and felt bloated from the pop. I made sure to drink plenty of water and eat sensibly yesterday.

At weigh in this morning I hoped to stay the same as last week and not show a gain. Imagine my surprise when I heard I'd lost another .7 pounds! I am down a total of 44.1 and looking forward to 45 and then 50!

Like many women who prefer to be the photographer rather than subject, I don't have many photos of myself that are full body shots. Perhaps I should have taken photos of my weight loss each month but since I didn't do that 6 months ago, this will have to do:

Onward and downward, parties and all!

The post-Thanksgiving weigh in

Weigh in #26, the Monday after Thanksgiving.....

One of my nieces has recently settled into her new home which is where Thanksgiving dinner was held last week. Everyone but her mom and I contributed food. It was all delicious.
And carb heavy.
And sweet.
Or carb heavy and sweet!
If you are a typical American, you know what I'm talking about.

In past years on WW or other plans, I either worried about a feast like this ahead of time, or I slipped into the trap of thinking "oh well, I already blew it, I may as well continue, but just for today".

I didn't worry and I didn't slip. To be honest, I didn't track points either but I was aware of what I was doing, right down to the small piece of chocolate cake and sliver of cheesecake. For the first time in a very long time, that was an indulgence, not a step on the path to old ways.

My husband and I like the traditional turkey dinner. We really like leftovers the next day. When you're a guest, you don't have that, not unless you cook a turkey breast, homemade dressing, sweet potatoes, mashed potatoes and gravy, devil some eggs, open a can of black olives and bake a pumpkin pie on Black Friday.

I'm not fond of gravy so I skipped that and the mashed potatoes and put a very small amount of sweet potatoes next to a large amount of broccoli. I skipped rolls but did have some dressing, a deviled egg, some olives and a small slice of pie. The rest of the weekend I stayed away from desserts, dressing and starchy vegetables. It wasn't a problem for me to do that.

The news at the scale this morning was good. I am down .6 for a total of 43.4 pounds. I could have been better but I also could have been much, much worse.

Onward and downward!

Weigh In #25

Wow....25 weigh ins! That means I've been at this for 26 weeks, half of a year.  I could berate myself for all of the times I told myself I would start Weight Watchers (or anything else) on the next Monday, but that Monday would come and go. I don't have a motivational secret to share. It is going to be different for every person, and will vary for each person throughout their life. What drove me at 32 is not what drives me now.

I was really under the weather yesterday. I don't think I'm sick with a cold as much as having sinus issues that are weather related which is part of the story of my life. I wasn't going to weigh in today but didn't plan to skip the week either. Instead, I got up and decided a shower might make me feel better. Then I decided I would want clean sheets tonight since so much tossing and turning took place yesterday, complete with Vick's Vaporub on chest and feet. Yes, I'm one of those who believes it might help so why not use it. My problem is that as much as I don't like cold feet, I don't like sleeping in bed with socks on. They came off at some point last night.

As long as I was clean and moving, why not weigh in and get it out of the way? Our weather is going from a balmy mid 50s this morning to highs in the low 30s for the rest of the week. As I debated what I should wear, I thought of last week's comment about wearing jeans. Ok....jeans it is.

I am down another pound, a total of 42.8. I am happy with the loss and oddly, even happier that I got over this thing about weighing in wearing jeans.

Onward and downward, with a nap and dreams of hitting the big five-oh in loss in another month or so. I don't have a time line in mind, I just trust that it will happen.

Weigh In #24

It is cold here in SE Michigan. What to wear on weigh in day that is warm but not heavy on the scales? I weighed three pairs of pants before deciding what to wear. Silly? Yes, but I wanted to be sure to hit a number on the scales today. Actually the numeric goal isn't my weight, but pounds lost.

I dressed, got into my parka and off I went to good news. My goal was to have a total of 40 pounds lost. I exceeded that, I am at 41.8 pounds gone!

I might even wear jeans and a sweater next week and accept that if the WW scales stay the same or even are up a few ounces, it might be the weight of clothing. The pants I wore today are sloppy big and uncomfortable because of that. What a nice complaint.

I found this online and while not sure of its accuracy, I'm willing to believe it is close:
33 pounds = a cinder block
36 pounds = a mid-size microwave
40 pounds = a 5-gallon bottle of water or an average human leg

 Onward and downward!

23rd Week

Today was good news!  This is me in my udderly wonderful banana tutu, doing the happy dance!

I am down 2.4 pounds from last week! After two sluggish weigh ins, what might have made the difference? Better tracking and drinking more water might have done it. I know that plateaus can be reached no matter how "good" you are, and that water retention on a weigh in morning or perhaps the other reason we visit bathrooms can affect the reading on our scales. Whatever the reason, doing a better job of tracking and drinking water certainly doesn't hurt anyone.

I am .3 pounds away from a total of 40 pounds lost! Why, oh why, wouldn't they let me take my jeans off at the scale?  


Onward and downward, with plenty of water.

22nd Weigh In, slowing down...

I'm down .3 this week for a total of 37.3.

I am relieved that I didn't have a gain or remain the same, and aggravated at myself even though I know that isn't positive. I stayed out of the Halloween candy and did a better job of tracking this past week, but I know I can do better. My biggest struggle right now isn't what I eat, but knowing that I need to incorporate exercise and not really wanting to do this.

I wake up, dress, come downstairs and have breakfast and additional cups of coffee while checking in with my online friends (2 small message boards), skim Facebook, check emails and do an online Sudoku puzzle. Other than necessary household chores and errands, my activity is creative, not physical. I knit. I do paper crafts. I read and write. At the end of the day, as I wind down for bed, I skim Pinterest and play Words With Friends.

I enjoy every minute of my day. I am not bored. I do need to set a schedule and move this body around more than getting up from my chair for another cup of coffee or glass of water.

Onward, forward and downward.....