Wednesday, January 31, 2007

It's only one day

Aha! I wasn't sure it was going to let me post, since it's still on the "old blogger". My dashboard was giving me this little message of how I am not the owner of this blog and it has not been changed as yet. Mmmkay... I guess it doesn't matter, 'cause here I am.

Anywho! I lost 3.2 this week. Woohoo! I was excited. Of course, I had thought I lost more, because she recorded that I did. But when I got home, I felt the need to check the totals over and she miscounted. But I am back up over 50lbs and am a happy girl, regardless. I am not sure how this next week will go, since I have let strawberry cheesecake ice cream come between me and the scale this week. It's 1/2 the fat, but when you sit and eat about 4 servings of it at once, it sort of defeats the purpose. There goes my extra points.

I hope everyone did good this week too!

Wednesday, January 24, 2007

WWIN

It's Wednesday. I was dreading this day since my weigh in. Ooomph. I gained another .4. I seem to be going backwards. I working for a better result this week. Hopefully, I'll accomplish it.

How'd you do?

Wednesday, January 17, 2007

Why oh why?

Why do I eat so much? Why oh why? Every morning I start out with the best of intentions. Every night I go to bed knowing that I chowed down a lot. I know being heavy is bad for my health. I know it's bad for my self image. I know I'd get more done if I were healthy. Why, then, do I continue to eat more than I should?

Of course, I've known for a long time that my eating is connected to my emotions. I get stressed, I eat. I get depressed, I eat. About the only time I don't eat is when I'm happy or grieving. Both seem to short circuit my ever-present appetite.

I know part of the problem is that I'm not drinking enough water. Which I'm going to commit to doing today. As for the rest of it, God help me.

And just so you know, I weighed and had gained 2.2 pounds. ARRRGGGG!!!!

Friday, January 12, 2007

Portion Sizes

My biggest problem has never been junk food or snacking. It's that I eat too large a portion of regular, healthy food at mealtimes. Over the past couple of days I've learned something about portion sizes. Thought I'd share. This is totally my own experience, so YMMV.

First thing that happened: I was super hungry on Wednesday and took a rather large portion of food at dinner. I was full by the time I ate half of it, so I put the rest aside for the next day. It was plenty for dinner yesterday.

Second thing that happened: I've been walking to get coffee and bringing my bagel with me. Like most coffee places, this one mainly has pastries, muffins, bagels, etc.--in other words, bread-like stuff. They also have some "egg with other stuff" sandwiches. I don't want more bread-like stuff, since I already have a bagel, and the egg sandwiches are way too much food, so I haven't been buying anything extra, even if I'm hungry. And I've been fine until lunch.

What I learned: First--I learned that I can't tell how much food I need by how hungry I think I am. Second--I can't tell when I'm not hungry anymore by how full I think I am.

What to do: By accident I hit on a way to deal with it. For the first thing--put an average-sized portion on my plate because I don't finish large ones. For the second--don't have seconds until at least a half hour after eating the average-sized portion because, even if I think I'm still hungry, a half hour later I'm fine.

So, that's what I learned for myself this week. Even if I don't lose weight, this should keep me from gaining back what I've already lost because it's a good rule-of-thumb for me to help me to keep from eating too much at meals.

Have a great week, everyone!

Wednesday, January 10, 2007

Down another notch

Hello buddies,

Did you weigh this morning? I did, and I'm down 1 pound from last week.

I'm off now to get groceries before an incoming storm makes it here. There are dire predictions of thick ice and arctic cold air. Brrrr! Again, that hibernation thing is looking good. Does anyone know if shivering counts as an aerobic exercise?



Saturday, January 06, 2007

You all are doing great!

I read the archives. I'm proud of the progress you've all made. Way to go!!

I've been avoiding blogs for a few months, which is why you haven't seen me around. But, I've been walking. Not dieting. I have no idea exactly what my current weight loss is because I haven't been on a scale for a few weeks. The last time I was on one, it was 33 pounds.

I was walking 3 miles on the track, 5 times a week. My husband started his new, permanent job (YAY!), this week. So, I've been walking to a local shopping center for coffee. It's about 3-1/2 miles total. I've been surprised at how easy the walk is. I'm considering going a different direction to a coffee place that's 2 miles one way. Right now, I have the time to do that long a walk, so it would be a fun challenge for me.

I finally broke down and got some new clothes. 4 sizes smaller. I'm happy. It's all the right direction. And I don't really care if I lose fast or slow or stay here for a while. Remember, my original goal was just to get in better shape and lower my blood pressure. We'll have medical benefits in February and I need to get some routine tests done. (I haven't had any done for years due to no insurance and not enough money to pay the fees). I'll find out then if I've succeeded in lowering my blood pressure back to at least normal. It used to be a tad low and that wouldn't be a bad thing, either.

Keep going, everyone. You're not a failure unless you totally give up! :)

Wednesday, January 03, 2007

Our first WWIN for 2007!!

Good morning friends! I actually remembered to weigh this morning. I am so happy to report that even through the holidays, I remain 7 pounds below my original starting weight.

Now, it's no longer good enough to tread water here. I've been hanging around this number for far too long and it's time to take it to the next level. There are no excuses in the way. No holidays for a long stretch (and really, shouldn't a holiday just be one day rather than a whole season from late October to mid-January? Don't we set ourselves up for this? Or have we failed to recognize a biological phenomenon -- human hibernation, for which we are predisposed to fatten up?)

Well, since they won't let me go sleep in my cave until spring, I guess the next best alternative is to wake up fully and move the body, and feed it correctly. Although, that bed DOES look rather inviting for a few months...

Let's create some early momentum here and DO SOMETHING positive this first week of the new year. We don't have to be at the level of the racer crossing the finish line at this point, but maybe we ought to be putting on our walking shoes and socks now!

Come on! Let's go!


Monday, January 01, 2007

Jan. 1, 2007

Several of us are re-enlisting to the program. We're all planning to be healthier and happier people in 2007. That's a great thing!

I've reset my weight loss to 0.00 pounds on the sidebar as well as added new quotes at the side and bottom of the blog (Thanks, Michelle, for the cool quotes!). I've also rewritten the blog description somewhat to sharpen the focus on our goals.

2007 is going to be our year! This Wednesday I will Weigh In (Our WWIN day). I dread the numbers on the scale since I've been indulging in all sorts of sweets this holiday season, but I won't let my past behavior dictate my future behavior.

I'm looking forward to cheering us all on as we enter The Great Slim Down for 2007!

I'm going to start off our sharing with a new recipe from Weight Watchers. I hope you enjoy this. I thought it tasted pretty good.

Spaghetti with Tomato-Meat Sauce

2 tsp olive oil
1 large onion(s), chopped
1 medium carrot(s), finely chopped
3 medium garlic clove(s), minced
1 pound uncooked lean ground beef (with 7% fat)
28 oz canned crushed tomatoes, in tomato puree
1/4 tsp table salt
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes, crushed
1/4 tsp dried basil
3 cup cooked whole-wheat spaghetti, kept hot

Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add onion, carrot and garlic. Cook, stirring frequently, until onion is translucent, about 6 minutes.

Add ground beef to skillet. Cook, breaking up clumps with a wooden spoon, until browned, about 4 minutes.

Stir in tomatoes and puree, salt, red pepper flakes and basil; bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer 5 minutes for flavors to blend and for sauce to thicken slightly; spoon sauce over spaghetti. Yields about 1/2 cup of spaghetti and 2/3 cup of sauce per serving. This serves 6. Serve with a green salad. (Each serving is 5 Points on the Weight Watchers.)