WW Weigh-In #64

Down a bit this week. I'll take it!

Last week: 196.0 lb
This week: 195.3 lb
Total lost this week: 0.7 lb

I'm still struggling but I'm also still running and doing weights, which I hope will help. But I've really got to focus on my eating. It's starting to get away from me again, which is likely obvious from my lack of weight loss.

And I won't be around next Wednesday; the Beau and I are off to Prince Edward County for a few nights. I'll hop on the scale when I get back on Friday, while doing my best to make sure that number isn't too scary!

WW Weigh-In #60

I feel like I had a very good week. I did my best to eat well and I felt better overall for it. And it showed on the scale:

Last week: 196.0 lb
This week: 195.0 lb
Total lost: 1.0 lb

It's not much but it's something! I would still like to lose 25 lb before my wedding, but I'll be happy if I can lose (and keep off) 15 lb. The more I struggle with my weight the more I think 180 lb might just be were it's at for me and that the last 10 lb to 170 will be my lifelong battle.

Honestly, though, that wouldn't be bad at all.

WW Weigh-In #57

It's a late post again, but I did get on the scale Wednesday morning.

Last week: 195.2 lb
This week: 194.0 lb
Total lost: 1.2 lb

That's a bit better.

So how am I doing just being active? Wednesday I spent a good four hours walking - sure, it was walking around the mall but it was still four hours of walking.  Thursday saw a workout with free weights and 40 minutes on the exercise bike. Friday I was home late and didn't have time to fit in a good workout but today I'm planning a nice walk to my optometrist (an hour round trip) and bowling tonight! BOWLING! I love bowling!

And tomorrow I want another good weights workout. So overall I'm doing all right...so far.

WW Weigh-In #55

Oh hey, how's it going? Here it is, already Wednesday again. And Wednesdays mean the scale and I wasn't sure how to feel about it this week. Fortunately, 'twas good news.

Last week: 194.2 lb
This week: 192.6 lb
Total lost: 1.6 lb

You know, it's only taken me a year to realize this, but I'm finally beginning to accept the hard work that will have to go into losing the weight I want to lose and maintaining that weight loss. When I first started Weight Watchers, the first 10 pounds came off so quickly, which really was just the result of not eating like crap. The next five were not too bad but ever since then it's been a struggle and I know it's because I got cocky and started to ignore the hard work I'd have to keep doing to keep up the momentum.

And it was great to have that success but I stopped appreciating how hard it really was going to be and that's why I've been on such a weight roller coaster for the last eight months. So maybe this is the mental breakthrough that will FINALLY help me get on - and stay on - the right track. \

I know where I want to be but so far I've refused to accept that it's not only going to be hard but that it's going to continue to be hard. But hard is not synonymous with bad; it's just something I will have to work at.

Eventually, healthy eating and making the right choices will be habit for me and I'll make exercise a regular part of my life and then it will be easy. But until then it will take work, it will be hard, it will be a challenge.

Good thing I like a challenge.

WW Weigh-In #54

So I'm more tortoise than hare when it comes to weight loss, but sometimes that's okay.

Last week: 195.4 lb
This week: 194.2 lb
Total lost: 1.2 lb

I will get this holiday weight off and I will get more off to boot and I will look amazing for my wedding and I will reach my goals.

(Even with the Great Pants Debacle of 2013.)

WW Weigh-In #53

I did my best to get back on a healthy eating kick this past week and it paid off, ever so slightly.

Last week: 196.6 lb
This week: 195.4 lb
Total lost: 1.2 lb

After that embarrassing gain last week, it's nice to see the scale going down, even just a bit. It will never cease to amaze me how quickly I can put on over 7.5 lb and how hard it is to get rid of that weight. But the scale is going in the right direction and I'd like to keep it that way!

WW Weigh-In #47

I'll be honest: I didn't get on the scale yesterday. I had to work and I'm currently knitting a hat for my brother so that took centre stage. But I did weigh in today, so we'll go with that:

Last week: 189.4 lb
This week: 187.8 lb
Total lost this week: 1.6 lb

Holy smokes, that's not too shabby! Honestly, I wasn't expecting this so I guess the salads are working. Seriously, though, I am trying to be more aware of what I'm eating and I'm listening more to my body so I stop when I'm full and if I crave something, I just have a bit to quell the craving. Baby steps (that I should have been doing for, you know, the past year) but it's working and that's all that matters!

The weddling slim-down begins

You would think that being on Weight Watchers would mean I wouldn't have to do any kind of separate slim-down for the wedding, and that's right. It's just I need a swift kick in the butt to get me back on track and getting married is that kick. And that slim-down starts today.


I am starting by having a huge salad for lunch. Did I want a salad? Last night I did, but today, smelling the pizza and burgers and curry in the cafeteria I wanted anything else. ANYTHING. But I stayed strong and got a salad with lots of veg, chopped egg and chick peas for protein and a vinaigrette dressing. I also picked up a fruit and cheese platter for my afternoon snack (which will ideally come after my workout).

Back on track, baby!

So let's see how long this lasts now.

I know I've gotten "back on track" so many times over the past year, so you may be asking how this time will be any different. The wedding is definitely an encouragement but so is my fear: I'm terrified of being a fat bride.

I'm sure it's no generalization to say that every woman wants to look and feel her best on her wedding day and I believe she should, regardless of size or shape. As long as SHE is happy with how she looks, then it's perfect. And I am not happy with how I look now or the idea of putting this body into a wedding dress. So I will be eating a lot of salads.

I was doing the math in my head as well. My wedding is about a year away (date is still not set) so if I were to lose a pound a week for the next year, I'd be down 52 pounds. While the idea of weighing 137 pounds is amazing, I also feel it's a bit unrealistic and probably a little unhealthy. Now if I were to lose 1/2 pound a week, that would be 26 pounds over the year and a final weight of 163 pounds. That number seems okay, actually. Considering my overall WW goal was 170 pounds, I would be okay with 163 pounds.

So all I have to do is lose 1/2 a pound each week between now and when I get married. That's all.

It seems so simple when I write it out like this, but I know it's going to be anything but.

WW Weigh-In #42

When I woke up yesterday I honestly couldn't believe it was weigh-in day again. Where did the week go?!?! But, as always, I got on the scale Wednesday morning, even if my update is coming late - again. So here are the numbers:

Last week: 189.0 lb
This week: 188.2 lb
Total lost this week: 0.8 lb

Weight loss target: 181.8 lb (185 lb by December 31)
To reach target: 6.4lb (3.2 lb by December 31)

And they're going back in the right direction. Though I expect some up-and-down over the next few weeks as we move and get our new house set up. As much as we want to eat healthy all the time, sometimes you need to get pizza after a day of painting.

But we get the house tomorrow (TOMORROW!) and we move next Tuesday so we'll be settled in very soon. I can't believe it's already here! There's going to be a lot going on with the house so I'll be sure to post updates.

Who knows, with all the work we'll be doing, I may just lose a few pounds!

WW Weigh-In #38

Woo hoo! I managed to lose two weeks in a row! It's been awhile since I've done this!

Last week: 188.4 lb
This week: 187.8 lb
Total lost this week: 0.6 lb

Weight loss target: 181.8 lb
To reach target: 6.0 lb

I've got to say I'm pretty happy right now. And being within 6 lb of my next goal (very familiar territory!) I've got the renewed vigour to get there.

One thing I need to do more of is exercise. Since my allergies kicked in I've been shirking all cardio, not just running. As much as I complain about the elliptical, 30 minutes while reading trashy magazines is not that much of a hardship. And it will help with the condo-selling anxiety so I just need to do it.

Next week, down a full pound!

WW Weigh-In #37

Back on track! Here's hoping I can lose two weeks in a row:

Last week: 189.6 lb
This week: 188.4 lb
Total lost this week: 1.2 lb

Weight loss target: 181.8 lb
To reach target: 6.6 lb

Of course, this is familiar territory as I've see-sawed over and under this weight a few times in the past several weeks. All I can do is keep going, keep trying and keep aiming for my weight loss target.

 I may not be able to run right now, but I can still Weigh Watch(ers)!

WW Weigh-in #34

So things are going in the right direction (again...for now):

Last week: 188.8 lb
This week: 187.2 lb
Total lost this week: 1.6 lb

Weight loss target: 181.8 lb
To reach target: 5.4 lb

 With the weather getting cooler and a house finally purchased, I'm feeling calmer and more invigorated. I'm also back to running regularly and doing well with that, so I'm confident I can not only lose a pound a week but maintain that loss week after week.

I'm also facing a busy stretch at work (the next four months, really) which will mean eating more meals at work. But knowing that's going to happen will help me plan and prepare meals and snacks to take to work - I just need to make sure I follow through on the plans! I've been buying my lunch for so long that when I plan to pack a lunch I often forget it at home.

Fortunately the work cafeteria has my favourite Greek yogurt available, as well as cut fruit and the salad bar that I've been ignoring for too long. Combine that with the sandwich counter and the vegetable sides that are available and I've got plenty of good options for when I do forget to pack a lunch. If only I didn't have to walk past the pizza counter to get to these spots!

Really, I'd love to be at my target weight for when we move into the new house. How great would that be? New home, new weight, all kinds of new beginnings.

It's something to strive for.

WW Weigh-In #32

It was another crazy week with lots of work hours and lots of being busy at home. One of my colleagues is on vacation (in Italy - lucky girl!) which has led to the longer work hours. It's weird, but 14-hour workdays honestly seem to fly by. If/when I'm ever back to a normal 8-hour workday it's going to feel like nothing!

In all this craziness, I did my best to keep up with my good eating habits but there were some slips. That's why, this morning, I weighed myself twice out of disbelief:

Last week: 187.2 lb
This week: 184.0 lb
Total lost this week: 3.2 lb

Weight loss target: 181.8 lb
To reach target: 2.4 lb

I promise you there were no unhealthy tactics used over the past week! I even had wine, pizza and tacos on the weekend. So how does one lose over 3 lb in a week? The short answer is pooping.

Okay, yes, it's kind of gross, but my digestive system has been in revolt the past few weeks but over the last few days I've managed to eat enough fibre and other good stuff to get back on track. My issues have also served as a wonderful reminder to eat lots and lots of fruit and veggies because they help keep one regular.

I've also got to get back to my running. I haven't had a good run in over a week. Being busy is the worst excuse, I know, but at work the only real breaks I've had were when I went to buy lunch. Now that the worst of the busyness is over, though, I'm going to get back on the running. My zombie run is coming up - September 22! - and I've got do to more outside running. But I'll do another post on that - I'm starting to ramble now!

But it's nice to feel back on track right when summer is winding down. Bring on the fall!

All about numbers

Last year, when I was trying (and not really succeeding) to lose weight on my own, I used various online calculators to determine my BMI, happy weight, ideal weight and ideal caloric intake.
(I know there's a blog post somewhere, I'm just too lazy to look it up. Sorry.)

Tonight I decided it was time to check these numbers again, minus the caloric intake since I'm using WW points.

Here's what I got:

BMI: 29.1 (which puts me at overweight)
Ideal weight: 118 - 159 lb
Happy weight: 148.1 lb

Well now.

It seems a bit obvious that I'd be happy weighing 148.1 lb but I don't feel like my body would look all that good at that weight. And 159 lb would put my BMI at 24.9, which happens to be the top end of my healthy BMI range. So that makes sense, but I still don't get the happy weight number.

Regardless, this also shines new light onto my goals. I wanted to hit 170 lb eventually; apparently I should be aiming 11 - 22 lb lower than that. And considering how hard it's been for me to get down to my current weight loss goal (10% of my body weight lost, or 181.8 lb) the idea of hitting these new weight loss targets is daunting.

I understand these are here for my health and to give me something to strive for. But I can't help feel a little discouraged by it all.

I was all ready to call 170 lb my happy weight, too.

(I used these calculators at self.com. Feel free to use them too, hopefully with more encouraging results!)

WW Weigh-In #30

Alright, so the numbers worked in my favour this week:

Last week: 187.8 lb
This week: 186.6 lb
Total lost this week: 1.2 lb

Weight loss target: 181.8 lb
To reach target: 4.8 lb

Even with decent weight loss I still feel like I'm stuck in a plateau and I'm not sure how to get out of it. Honestly, I'm wondering if I need to just get through the summer as best I can and refocus come the fall. I know this sounds weird - after all, summer is supposed to be the time to be outside and active. Thing is, the heat and humidity of the summer makes me feel sluggish and gross and I actually spend more time inside than any other season. Once the cooler, fresher weather of fall rolls around, I love being outside and my goal is to start running outside come the fall.

I like sweating when I have a good workout. I don't like sweating as soon as I step out my front door. Fall can't come fast enough.

WW Weigh-In #26

Week 26! That's halfway through the year! I fully plan to stick to WW for the rest of the year (even with my sporadic points tracking) so this is my midterm weigh-in. I was fully expecting more gain but I was pleasantly surprised:

Last week: 186.8 lb
This week: 185.2 lb
Total lost this week: 1.6 lb

Weight loss target: 181.8 lb
To reach target: 3.4 lb

Once again, I see myself staring down about three and a half pounds from losing 10% of my starting body weight. I want this SO BAD. I can do it! I can do it! I can do it!

Because it's the halfway point of the year, I wanted to also share the good, the bad and the ugly of what I've learned through the past 26 weeks.

Weight
The good: I've lost - and kept off - 15 pounds since starting. 15 pounds COMPLETELY gone!
The bad: I've been slipping of late, gaining and losing the same five pounds. But I'm still working on getting past that.
The ugly: I still get more irritated and annoyed than I should when I see how women are portrayed in the media and the expectations of how they should look. I still need to work on better body acceptance.

Food
The good: I've discovered healthier food that I actually like and I've been enjoying eating better. I'm also getting better with food portions.
The bad: I still have my moments of weakness, usually involving chocolate.
The ugly: Pizza. It's my biggest weakness and I always eat too much. I'm beginning to think it's got to be all or nothing.

Clothes
The good: I'm fitting into smaller sizes! Woo hoo!
The bad: I'm shrinking out of clothes I haven't had for very long.
The ugly: Nada. This is going really well!

Exercise
The good: Through WW, I'm discovering the points values for various activities and, really, I'd rather accumulate as many activity points as I can - which means lots of exercising - which is good for me and my weight!
The bad: I still struggle with motivation, but I'm getting better.
The ugly: I'm not as far as I'd like to be with my running and 5K training, but I'm hoping to turn that around with my Couch to 5K program.

Overall though, I'm happy with what I've been learning and how far I've come. I know I still have work to do and some struggles to overcome but it's still a learning process and I'm going to find that sweet spot where my ideal weight, ideal menu and ideal lifestyle all come together in perfect harmony.

WW Weigh-In #24

Now that's what I'm talking 'bout Willis! Finally moving in the right direction, at the right pace:

Last week: 186.8 lb
This week: 185.8 lb
Total lost this week: 1.0 lb

Weight loss target: 181.8 lb
To reach target: 4.0 lb

One pound down, four to go!

I wasn't able to fit in a workout on Monday BUT I had a great one yesterday (weights and a run - awesome!) and another one today. And my muscles have that lovely day-after soreness to them that I do so love. Though I'm kind of over gaining and losing the same few pounds so maybe that will help me stay on the straight and narrow!

I'll be honest: I haven't been as diligent as I should with my points tracking. I'm discovering that I do know the better choices to make and I'm aware of what I'm eating but I really need to get back to the points. I do just fine until I drink too much on the weekend and need greasy hangover food the day after and then I'm to ashamed to track anything. That said, I always weigh in. I may cheat with the points tracking but I won't cheat with my weigh-ins because that's really only hurting me.

One reason I find weight loss in the summer so hard is because it's the time of year for patios, beer, burgers and ice cream and when it's hot and hazy (and, let's face it, way too humid for human consumption) I become the embodiment of hungry laziness. Of course, the irony is not lost on me, as summer is also the time for bathing suits and less clothing and exposed skin and such. Oh, the paradox I find myself in! Though with a little more will power and some better points tracking, I can get myself out of this.

Yeah. I'm going to do just that!

What my weight loss looks like

Here's a shot of my weight loss chart, from Weight Watcher:

It's a little tough to read but that purple line is my goal weight and the jagged green line shows my progress since I started. There are three stars along the way, demarcating 5 lb lost, 5% of my body weight lost, and another 5 lb lost, respectively. As you can see there have been a few spikes where I've gained, but overall it's really rather lovely to see it going down the way it does.

It's one thing I love to be able to look at as it gives a great visual reference of where I started and how far I've come.

WW Weigh-In #22

Hi guys. Sorry I didn't update yesterday, but I have a good excuse: I'm sick. I've been battling a cold since Sunday but it's the kind of cold that just knocks me out, so I spent yesterday sleeping. (Seriously. I got to bed about 4:30 am Wednesday morning - after work! - and between then and 11:30 pm, I was awake for about six hours.)

I did manage to fit in a weigh-in during those brief waking hours but I didn't have it in me to blog. I'm feeling better today and I'm back at work, so if I can work I can blog, right?

Here's how I did:

Last week: 186.0 lb
This week: 185.6 lb
Total lost this week: 0.4 lb

Weight loss target: 181.8 lb
To reach target: 3.8 lb

I'll be honest, I wasn't expecting a loss at all. I had little exercise this past week and I felt like I was eating constantly, never mind the Southern food dinner I had Saturday night at book club (we read To Kill a Mockingbird, so Southern food was a must!).

Still, any amount lost is a loss and it counts. And now that I'm only 3.8 lb away from my next target, I'm aiming for Four Pounds in Four Weeks. Losing a pound a week is not only completely possible but reasonable and healthy and it helps break down these last four pounds before my goal.

And it just so happens that July 4 will be the scheduled day I'll hit my target, so it's Four Pounds in Four Weeks by July 4th. How great is that!

May the 4th be with me!

45 pounds in nine years

Remember those old infomercial ads for the Hair Club for Men? With the guy who would say, "Not only am I the president, but I'm also a client" (or something to that affect)? It always felt so cheesy because the Hair Club for Men just seemed to ridiculous.

Today, I came across another president who also uses the services of the company he heads, but it was much more credible. It's an article in the Globe and Mail about David Kirchhoff, the president and CEO of WW International. He's the one who took nine years to lose 45 pounds and he's written a book about it.

But he also offers up some great advice in the article, which not only makes sense but rings truer than the Hair Club ever did because he's using a program that has been proven to work for millions of people (me included), but he also didn't have instant, immediate and forever-lasting success from the start. It's nice to see that other people struggle and that they're not afraid to talk about it. Among other things, the article has this to say:

The reason why so many people tend to fail when trying to lose weight is they expect a “miraculous and massive achievement” to happen overnight. The truth is, success comes from slogging it out over years, not days or weeks.

Sure, Jennifer Hudson is a great celebrity spokeswoman for WW, but she has more resources at her disposal than I'll ever have so of course her success has been astronomical. That's not the reality for the majority of people and I enjoy seeing how the normal ones make it work.

While I'm hoping it won't take me nine years to lose 45 pounds, suddenly it doesn't seem so bad if it does.