Appearances

 I was curious to see if there are any changes in my appearance from week to week.  What do you think?

Misery

Almost a week ago, DH decided to become pseudo-vegetarian.  I was/am not ready to completely give up meat.  Wednesday, he was crabby.  I asked him why he was so crabby and he stated it was because he didn't have meat since Saturday. 

Fast forward to tonight.  The kids are horribly behaved.  Neither one of us feels like cooking, but the behavior of our kids keeps us from dining out.  DH suggests pizza, because they deliver.  We have had homemade pizza twice this week, so it doesn't sound appealing to me at all.  I suggest a fast food restaurant down the road from our house. It is actually my favorite fast food chain.

I go in to place our order, because I really don't know what I want.  I have had most things on the menu, and I can't think of one thing I don't like.  If I was thinking at that moment, I would have looked up the menu either before I left the house or on my phone.  I was really jonesing for fish fry.  This restaurant had a Cod Sandwich or a 2 or 3 piece Cod Dinner.  I contemplated ordering a dinner option.  I decided to get the  Cod Sandwich with a small fry.  If I looked up my options prior to ordering I would have known this meal was more than my daily points plus budget.  EEK!  I could have made a smarter decision.

My intent here is not to beat myself up over an indiscretion.  The point is I learn from this and move on.  I like to write about it to keep track of my journey, to see what obstacles have overcome in full honesty with myself. 

So, I ate half the sandwich.  It was so delicous.  It fed my craving.  I looked at the other half and decided to eat that too.  Now, I feel MISERABLE.  My stomach hurts.  It is overfull and churning from the oil the fish swam in before it made it's way into my stomach. 

For the record DH had a Double Cheeseburger.

Week 3 Update

I was thinking about what to write tonight.  Obviously, include my weightloss for the week - which is -1.6 pounds for a total of 6.8 pounds!  I wanted more substance than "Hey, I lost 1.6 pounds this week."  Then I realized I am three weeks in which is 21 days.  21 days triggered the adage of "It takes 21 days to make a habit."  I have been tracking my food intake for 21 days.  I have never done that before.  I have tracked food - just not for 21 days straight!

I am finding counting points really easy with the tools Weight Watchers has available for it's members.  I mainly use eTools.  I love seeing the points budget at the top of my plan webpage.  It helps keep me accountable.  Not only does it help me stay accountable, but within my points budgets. 

The next goal I want to work on is getting in regular exercise.  I will get exercise in 6 days of exercise this week.

I did do well on my mini goals this week.  Well enough, to consider them successful, and it showed on the scale tonight.

Tonight's meeting was very inspiring.  So many people had met amazing milestones.  One lady lost over 30 pounds since starting WW.  A man met his goal this week.  I love that my group is so upfront with what is making and keeping them successful.  The theme tonight was perseverance.  The man said the last 5 were the hardest.  He kept at it, and tonight he met his goal.


Have you made any recent good habits?  Was it challenging?

Week 3 mini goal update

Yesterday, I set two goals for myself 1. Drink 64 oz of water and 2. Exercise 3 times.  Today, WAS looking pretty bleak for both of those things

I realized at lunchtime that I had not had any water to drink yet - milk and coffee yes, but pure H2O - no.  I poured myself a glass of water to have with my lunch.  The rest of the day mimicked the beginning - struggling to get the water in.  The main reason is that I haven't been carrying water around with m, today.

I am I put on my work out clothes late this morning.  My thought was that I would take the dog for a walk around the neighborhood.  Things started icing over pretty quick and squashed my plan  I got on with my day.  Pretty soon, I realized I had gotten too on with my day and it was time to get the girls to bed.  EEK, what is a girl to do?  It would be a shame not to stink up perfectly good work out clothes.  Queue Netflix streaming exercise videos, search for yoga, select yoga video, and get cozy with the mat. 

Goals: Water consumption: 40% for today.
Exercise 100% for today!

Not smart goals and smart goals

I feel like I am floundering on my journey by not setting goals weekly.  Well, other than get to the meeting and weigh less than I did last week.  I feel like I could have seen a bigger number last week if I would have drank more water and exercised more.  The first week I was drinking 64 oz of water a day and now I have cut way back unintentionally.  On Wednesday I said that I would drink more water this week.  I still haven't been doing good.  So, to make this goal smart - I will drink at least 64 oz of water a day Sunday - Wednesday!

I have been waking up early 2 days a week and doing some strength training, but nothing that I am super proud of.  I did walk on the treadmill 1 last week.  Smart goal here - I will get in 3 good work outs before weigh in.

Week 2 Summary

I saw some people on Facebook who are doing Weight Watchers use the phrase, "Onward and Downward."  That is how I feel about this week.  I know I could do better.  It doesn't pay to beat myself up.  I know what I did wrong, and what to do different next time I encounter those situations.

This week we were talking about what causes us to derail from our plans/lifestyles/etc.  Some members were talking about being closet eaters - meaning they binge when they are home alone.  Our leader brought up an old WW saying, "What you eat in private. shows up in public".  It is so true.  I have found myself sneaking food.  I do track it, though.  I just feel safer eating certain things with out the diet police watching. 

One of my struggles is getting my husband to understand my metabolism and health needs (eg brats for dinner).  He has good intentions, but is somewhat clueless when it comes to health and nutrition.  I am not sure how committed he is to health, because he seems OK with himself,.  Every once in awhile, he does something to show me he is on board - like buy 100% organic fruit juice for the kids.  I also need to be more patient with educating him.  I think sometimes I react poorly for the situation and he gives up.  I need to remind myself that he is trying though.

I am down one pound this week.   Which brings me to a total of 5.2 pounds.  I reached my first WW goal in 2 weeks!  I am OK with this loss, because it is my weight going in the right direction.  4.8 pounds to the goal.  I need to talk to DH about some rewards.  For the 5 pounds I lost thus far, I am going to paint my nails.


One final thought:  After tonight's meeting, I told DH how much I am down.  I posed and said, "Can you tell?"  I was joking, because I am not 100% sure anyone would notice a five pound loss on me.  He said, "Actually, I noticed yesterday."

Saboteurs

The thing that I think is the biggest struggle when trying to get healthy is saboteurs.  They are the #1 reason I have not stuck with anything long enough to be completely satisfied or successful.  You may think you know what is a saboteur. You think you have done everything in your power to have the kryptonite against their superpowers. In reality, they are lurking in the dark corners waiting for you to let your guard down.  I am not trying to be all doom an gloom on your endeavor.  I am just sharing an experience that made me realize I need to keep my guard up against the most well meaning supportive people too.

Saboteurs come in many forms:
Your good meaning significant other
Generous co-worker that always has a dish of candy out
TV advertisements for Snickers
Your healthy friends
Your unhealthy friends
Your mom
Your brothers and sisters
Your children
Your friend's daughter who is a Girl Scout
Your kitchen
Your pantry
Your car
The mall
Magazine advertisements
Vending machines

The list could go on and on...

I demanded convinced my husband to let me join Weight Watchers.  He said things like, "You never stick to anything." and "You are going to succeed."  When I told him I lost 4.2 pounds last week he said, "Yea, good job!".  Today, he bought bratwursts home.  He claimed to even buy ones I would like.  They are stuffed with mushrooms and swiss.  He did not need to buy me special brats, because I do enjoy brats.  In the dedication of getting back on track from binge days, I told him I was not going to have a brat.  He said something to the effect of having to have one for the Packer game.  I explained having a brat may make me go over my points for today.  I already dipped into my weekly points twice this week.  The week is about half over for me - so why would I take a chance to dip into them again?  He does not want to get it.  I swear.  He seemed so happy that I was able to lose 4.2 pounds last week.  Why would he not want me to see the same success this week?  He is an unknowing saboteur.  Meaning, he doesn't realize that he is sabotaging me.

Maybe in our exchange regarding the brats I should have told him the apple and chicken sausages are more my thing these days...

When you fall off the bike, get right back on!

About 2 years ago I listened to Kristin Steede, a former contestant from Biggest Loser speak.  She was so energetic and inspiring.  She said something that I think anyone on this journey should adopt as their philosophy.  I can't remember the exact quote, so I will do my best to get the point across.  Don't take the journey day by day.  Take it hour by hour (or minute by minute).  When you slip up, don't say, "I will do better tomorrow."  Get back on track immediately.

I slipped up yesterday and the day before.  Thursday's slip up was at lunch.  I got the rest of my day back on track.  Yesterday, I slipped up at lunch and at dinner.  When I realized what I was doing I removed myself from the kitchen.  Both days I dipped into my 49 extra points.  I really hate doing that so early in my week.  I am not dwelling on this, but putting it out there to 1) show that everyone makes mistakes and 2) to help me learn from my actions.  The binges I had did not leave me feeling good physically.  My stomach was churning and I got soooo tired.  The emotional part only lasted while I was eating.  The emotional satisfaction ended when I swallowed the last bite.

This morning I started my day out on track.  I am happy with my breakfast from this morning.  Now onto lunch.

Believe and the Power of a Plan

Last week, I started Weight Watchers.  I was frustrated with myself and lack of forward motion trying to get healthy.  I took a step back and really evaluated myself.  I asked myself, "What have I done to be successful in the past?"  The answer came to me quickly.  I was coached and took a class that taught steps to take to lead a healthier lifestyle.  My husband and children had gone to my in-laws early for the long New Year week end.  I decided to attend a meeting for free.  I left that meeting feeling on top of the world.  The leader is amazing, energizing, and sincere.  I could tell she wanted everyone in the room to succeed.

I told my husband (I did not ask) that I was joining Weight Watcher.  I told him how the group support was what made me successful in the the past.  I signed up at the next meeting I could attend.  That meeting was even more inspiring and motivating.  We talked about the theme, "Believe".  You need to believe you can do it to be successful.  You need to reprogram your thinking to achieve this.  For example the old you might say, "I lost 5 pounds, so as a reward I will eat a pint of ice cream."  The new you will say, "I lost 5 pounds, so as a reward I will treat myself to a manicure,"  or another non food item.  Another example of this is overcoming your mental demons if you have a bad week, day, hour, minute.  It is normal to slip up or plateau.  Forgive yourself and move one.  If you didn't lose this week, it does not mean that you are a failure.  It means you still have opportunity to improve.

This week we talked about the power of having a plan.  Which is the #1 reason I think I was so successful in losing 4.2 pounds.  After last weeks meeting, I came home, looked through recipes on Weight Watchers eTools, and in my Hungry Girl cookbook.  I planned out 7 dinners, lunches, and breakfasts.  I then loosely planned some snacks.  I knew one day at work we were having a work lunch, so I brought the Weight Watchers (WW) Garden Vegetable soup.  This soup has ZERO point plus.  It is delish, too.  I ate the soup then had some pizza.  I was feeling pretty full by time I got halfway through the second piece. 

Which leads me with the #2 reason for week 1 success...budgeting points.  I am not a budgeter.  Or I should say I WAS not a budgeter.  I have always had problems sticking to the plan of counting calories or tracking what I eat, but WW and the Points Plus system makes it easy.  They provide tools to take the guess work out of calculating your points.  Armed with my Daily Points Plus value, I tracked my food on eTools (again removing the guess work).  I found that I was good about hitting my Points Plus Values (PPV) most days.  Two days I dipped into my extra 49 PPV that every WW member gets.  Towards the end of the week, I felt myself really understanding the PPV budget. Most fruits and veggies have ZERO points.  So, that is like free food ;)  When I got hungry and I was close or at my daily PPV, I would have an orange or cucumber slices.  The internal conversation went, "I am hungry, but I don't have any points left.  If I eat an orange, that won't cost me any points."

How successful was I this week?  4.2 pounds!