Are we there yet? Formerly: 12 Week Experiment

[Arewethereyet]

Have set a new goal for myself to get another chunk of weight off. I've lost and kept off about 15 lbs since August, but have been hovering around the same mark for most of the time since. I'd like to re-commit to this type of eating style--mostly MWL, but may fall back on the regular program to accommodate my husband, my transition, or social situations as they arise.

I don't want to be too much of a perfectionist, so as long as I get back on the wagon after slips, and continue forward, that will count as a success.

I hope to lose another 15 lbs in about 12 weeks. This will put me very close to 200 lbs (which I weighed briefly in June of 2011). I want to stop using caffeine, as it had started to be a crutch again. It is also a great vehicle for cream and sugar. I've already switched to tea, and will transition off of that soon.

I also belong to a weight-loss group where we can do our own plan, but as a group we have a goal of keeping food journals, so this will be mine from now on.

So far today:
Too cold to walk to work
B: 1/2c oatmeal with box of raisins, cinnamon
S: Green tea and gum (probably should stop the gum too).
L: Bag of frozen mixed vegetables (peas, corn, carrots, green beans) Someone commented that they looked like skittles!
S: Gum and herbal tea
D: Broccoli/bean/potato soup
S: popcorn, bean dip and carrots, about 1T peanuts...
Went to bed early so i wouldnt eat any more

Trying to eat what's in the house, need groceries tomorrow.

...also want to increase exercise, working up to 30-60 minutes a day. Right now, I walk to work when I feel like it, which isn't always very often. I don't feel as ambitious about this as I do about the eating plan...maybe one at a time.

[Arewethereyet]

B: oatmeal, peaches
Early lunch: frozen brown rice/veg. Carrots, bean dip. Froz. Mango
S: salad
D: stirfry veg w/tempeh and rice
S: 1 T peanuts

Hard to say in what way, but I feel a bit better. Maybe, just happy to be doing what i should.

Exercise...meh.

[Arewethereyet]

Finished last night with another salad.

This morning, down to 212.8. Did 10 min of walking videos, and have decided to do at least 5 min of activity a day, no matter my motivation level. I'm sure i can do more, it just never sounds appealing to start.

B: tempeh, hash browns (can never get these to turn out right), mango chunks
S: raw carrot, cauliflower, apple
L: left over soup, water
S: rice cup w/half of the seasoning. Salad
D: leftovers from last night
S: peanuts, 2T, popcorn.

Somewhat disappointed about today. Feel like i ate too often out of boredom. This was probably more of a maintenance day than a weight loss day.

This week, i dont have to work full days, so im looking forward to getting out a bit more.

[Arewethereyet]

Weight: 212.2
Exercise: 15 minute walking video, and some crunches.

B: 2/3c dry oatmeal, 1/2 cup blueberries
S: Apple
L: frozen rice w/veg. Raw carrots, cauliflower w/bean dip
S: i dont think i had anything
D: steamed grean beans and potato w/no salt seasoning, mango

Thought i ate enough, but was really hungry right before bed.

[Arewethereyet]

Weight: 210.8 (i know this is water weight, but it's still motivating)
Exercise: 35 min walking vid w/canned beans as weights.

B: same as yesterday with tea
S: apple
L: probably sweet potato or black bean soup and salad
D: macaroni and "cheese" (trying oh she glows recipe with butternut squash) w/peas and steamed broccoli
S: Peanuts, 1T

Apparently my last vice is peanuts. I've successfully avoided my husband's bread, crackers, and peanut butter the last few days. I'm off coffee and caffeinated tea. I feel like I'm sleeping better, but I must not have been so addicted as to have lasting headaches. My intake was pretty irregular.

The recipe was pretty good. I liked the sauce better before I added the butternut squash. It made it taste less like cheese, and more sweet. Still a nice flavor though. Not my favorite, but not a failure either. It did have some fat in it. If I make it again, I'll experiment with less fat and something less sweet than squash.

[Arewethereyet]

Day six! Amazing. I'm still relying on some willpower, but I think I did a good job of stocking the kitchen and establishing boundaries. I've been thinking today about why I'm doing it this way. I don't necessarily have to be this strict, but I so badly want my weight to change. I often get stuck between 230 and 210 lbs, so not out of the woods yet. I should also add that I have some issues that act up when I don't eat so well. I'm interested in what three months of consistent eating and exercise will do. (Minor break outs, dysmenorrhea, etc.)

Not making major compromises and having suitable food in the house is making it easier to continue. I was inspired by something I heard Dr. Goldhammer say on a video--basically observe yourself and get honest about what you can handle eating. It's been less than a week, so I still need to be vigilant. Need to recreate this situation next week--11 more to go!

Coming up this month are some family eating situations that I will have to plan for....what will I do when I visit my parents this weekend? We usually eat and visit. They are fairly healthy eaters at home, but love to eat out. Will I decide to bring something, eat early, or decide to eat something not so great...how much can I handle that trigger?

My husband's birthday is at the end of the month. He only ever wants a cake. I was successful in making him standard banana bread this weekend and didn't eat any of it, so I may be able to do that again, but do I want to put myself in the situation?

Weight: 210.4
Exercise: 15 min video, some lunges and crunches. I thought the video would be 45 minutes, but it turned out to be just a sample. Was out of time this morning. I'll try again tomorrow. (Walked later w/husband around neighborhood, about 30 min)

B: Same oatmeal as yesterday
S: Gum x2, water.
L: Bean soup cup (half the seasonings), raw veg.
S: popcorn, tea
D: Left-over pasta, broccoli
S: sweet potato, raisins

Was funny in my weight group yesterday. We meet in the evenings, so while I've only seen a few lbs difference in my morning weight. My evening weight was more than six lbs different than last week! I didn't go into the reasons, just that I had been very consistent this week. I sort of feel like superman--secret strength underneath the plain-clothes disguise.

[Arewethereyet]

Weight: 210.4
Skin: not clearing/healing yet
Exercise: 45 min walking video w/"weights" (this was douable, but got quite out of breath in parts).

B-steamed potatoes and green beans
S-leftovers from breakfast
L-frozen rice, tiny bit of frozen veg, apple
S-leftover lunch and smoothie w/unsweetened soy milk, peaches, blueberries.
D-vegetable bean soup

Nothing to add, except that I'm feeling way too impatient...and I want bread.

[Arewethereyet]

Start of week 2.

Weight lost 4.8lbs last week. 19.8 lbs lost since August 25, 2016. I already summed up some of the changes I made last week above. This week, I want to stop eating peanuts, prep more appropriate snacks for MWL, continue to exercise at 30-45min/day most days.

Exercise--got distracted by youtube this morning and had to be at work, maybe later today.
Weight--209.8

Seeing some friends tonight, luckily not for dinner! Tomorrow, lunch with family..it's not just my parents now, I will do my best to influence location.

I did dip into the peanuts a tiny bit last night. I procrastinated yesterday, and did not cut up carrots to snack on as planned. Will have my husband hide them tonight. (Also added some crackers to my soup--oops!)

B: 2/3c oatmeal and about 1 cup frozen peaches. May need to increase this, or plan more snacks.
S: veg soup
L: leftover soup, rice, kiwi
D: rice, carrots, 2 T hummus

15 min video.

[Arewethereyet]

Weight: 209.8
Exercise: 15 min vid.

B: fruit salad, baked oatmeal, green tea
L: ate out with fam- 1.5 large blueberry pancakes (very little syrup, small hash brown, fruit
S: kashi cookie, sweetened iced tea
D: brown rice

[Arewethereyet]

Just read, and want to remember..."... aim for a BMI of 18.5 - 22, focus on low calorie dense, high nutrient dense foods, be moderately active, and enjoy life." (Jeff Novick)

[Arewethereyet]

Was sick from what I had on Saturday, but did very well getting back on track for Sunday:

Sunday:
Weight: 209.8
Exercise: 45 min a.m. video/45 min p.m. walk around park (gorgeous day!)

B: Fruit salad, baked oatmeal, tea.
L: 2 c Cabbage, veg soup, steamed potato (1-1/2 cup)
D: Whole Wheat Pasta 1.5 cups, with Zucchini and tomatoes, strawberries.

Monday:
Weight: 209.6
Exercise: walked to work and back (30 min round trip). I might do some yard work or another video later, not sure.

B: Baked oatmeal, banana, soymilk
S: Tea
L: 1c pasta, with zucchini, raw cabbage and carrots
S: Maybe apple/orange
D: Leftover pasta and veg from yesterday.

Didn't feel the need to snack Sunday, hopefully I'm getting adjusted. I did have symptoms Friday and Saturday of either orthostatic blood pressure changes or anemia symptoms after sitting for a long time in the car. Hope these resolve too. They are infrequent, so I forget about them.

I was disappointed to be the same weight, but then reminded myself that I've made quite a bit of progress. I'm down now to where I was when I started to lose a bunch of weight a few years ago. Which means I will probably start noticing the difference more soon!

[Arewethereyet]

Weight: 210.8 *whine*
Exercise: 15 min video a.m.

Felt bad after having a late helping of Pasta and peanuts last night after dinner. It wasn't a binge amount, but definitely meal sized. Starting to forgive myself. I think I let myself get too hungry in the afternoon, and also didn't put the peanuts away like I planned.

Today:
B--1/2 bowl oatmeal with berries, water
S: Tea
L: Frozen rice/veg mix, 2 kiwi, water
D: Plan to have tortilla casserole, but have my meeting tonight.

[Arewethereyet]

Weight: 209.4 (Was expecting to keep going up).
Exercise: none so far.

Being back at work full time really puts a damper on my healthy schedule. I'm also wanting to let things creep back into my diet...
Last night dinner: didn't end up cooking. Had steamed potatoes and green beans, carrots and 2T hummus. Popcorn.

B: Husband's cereal, unsweetened soy milk, banana
S: Coffee with Creamer
L: Pea soup cup, orange, strawberries, green beans
S: ?
D: Enchilada casserole.

[Arewethereyet]

Weight: 209.4
Exercise: 25 min video

B: Berry smoothie, baked oatmeal
L: Green Beans, Brown Rice, Berries
D: Left-over casserole, carrots, hummus
S: baked oatmeal, oyster crackers


Probably starting Saturday grocery day, I'm going to get some more of the concentrated foods out of my diet. I feel like I'm doing really well, but want to stop some of the extras before they get worse.

In a moment of weakness (or something), I said I would make a birthday dinner and cake for my husband next week. Duh! So I will have to plan what I will eat that's a little better. I'm making Lasagna for him, so maybe I'll make a little pasta and sauce for me. Ideally, instead of the cake, I'll pick something quick that I can make individually for myself for a treat.

[Arewethereyet]

Start of week three!!
Despite the large dinner and extra snacking I had last night, still had a good outcome on the scale today.

Weight: 209
Exercise: video after work

B: baked oatmeal, smoothie
L: Bean soup, fruit, carrots
D: leftovers?

Down 6 out of 15 lbs.