shinybaubles's Journal

Getting Back on Track...
Oct 19 2009 11:41

Last week's track record was spotty at best.  I did manage to make or break the ten flight goal Tuesday thru Friday (Monday I was only in for half day, but I think I managed six that day).  I didn't quite make fifteen each of those days - I think I missed that by a couple flights on two different days.

Work has been a bit of a bear lately, trying to get used to new projects and new (again) environment, which has made getting out of my chair a little tougher lately.  So, there's been less walking at work, fewer bathroom breaks, fewer stairs, and a lot more work.  The way my employer would prefer it, I'm sure!  :-)

I fell down on the logging last week as well, making it about halfway through Tuesday and then missing the rest of the week again.

I'm going to keep on trying though, so today I've made sure to log everything so far.  Plus, my partner and I got up half an hour early (5:30am - groan!) to take the dogs for a walk around the neighborhood.  I'm pretty sure that got my metabolism going, since I've been starving all morning!  I've stayed completely within my "allowed" snacks though, and lunch is right around the corner, so it's all good.

Just have to regain my focus and not give up!  I can do this!!

Great Week!
Oct 09 2009 17:02

Ok, so I had taken a break from logging calories (and activities to some extent).  I've been weight cycling between 232-224, mostly around 228 I think.  It was really feeling like a plateau, and I was getting a little discouraged.  I thought I had enough good habits going that I could more or less maintain for a bit and stop paying so much attention to the scale.

Well, that worked all right for a little while, but when I started noticing myself beginning to lapse back into some old (bad) habits, I figured it was time to hold myself accountable again.  I have managed to log all of my eating for the week, doing it every day since Monday.  I've also managed to be under my maintenance calories every day, and if my additional activity is taken into account then I also managed to be pretty close to goal most days.  I'm not such a stickler that I can't see that as the accomplishment that it is!

Along with that, today I actually managed to make it up 15 flights of stairs!  No, not all at once, mostly two at a time.  That means that today I'm back up to 5 minutes going up stairs, and a 50% increase over my 10 flight goal!

All in all, I'd say this has been a great week!  I don't know what the scale will say, but I say "Good job me"!

Step Goal #2 - Update #2
Oct 08 2009 10:43

I'm totally kicking this goal's butt! I have done really well, and am super impressed with myself.  I've only missed my daily goal twice so far, and each time I was only short by one or two flights, so yay me!  I've even been taking the stairs carrying all my morning-time bags -- talk about breathing heavy.

Anyway, apparently I'm also getting faster.  I finished up my assignment out at the client site I had been at (a week ago Tuesday was my last day).  So since a flight at the home office is twenty-two stairs instead of twenty-four, I timed myself on the stairs here.  My time is now twenty seconds, down from thirty, a decrease more than can be explained by a two stair difference!  Again, yay me!

The last several days I've been trying to up my flight total to try to come closer to five minutes.  The official goal was ten flights and I'm sticking with that for now, but since I set the goal thinking it would be five minutes I figure I need to at least give that a try.  I'm up to thirteen so far, which ends up being something like 4.3 minutes.  I need fifteen flights to get back to the five minutes, so that's where I'm headed.

Gonna keep working!

Step Goal #2 - Update #1
Sep 11 2009 17:06

So earlier this week, Wednesday actually, I decided on a new step goal (I think I like that term, but I'm still open to changing it).  My overarching goal of course is to be healthy, fit and trim (which I'm not particularly at this point, though I'm definitely "-er" than I used to be).  Eating below my maintenance weight is of course the first "step goal" that I've basically gotten pretty good at over the past six months...

WOW! I just realized it's been six months since I started eating lighter!  Yay me!!!

Anyway, my new "step goal" is to walk 10 flights of steps every day I go to work.  Typically this would be M-F, since I have a regular 40 hr/wk job, but I'm giving myself an out on Holidays, Sick Days, etc.

I timed myself on Wednesday, and going up one flight of stairs takes me about 30 seconds, so ten flights ends up being five minutes of "up stairs" activity.  Five minutes on the stairs actually burns more calories for me than a 10 minute work break walk!  Cool!

I have now "stepped up" to my step goal every day this week since setting it, Thursday and Friday.  Good Job, me!

Let's see how I do Monday when I'm dragging my briefcase, laptop, and lunch along...

Exciting Day!
Jun 07 2009 08:55

I know that I didn't do anything extraordinary last week to merit such a big loss, but I'm just going to enjoy my 234.5 anyway!  I'm not going to be negative and question it, because eventually I'll be even lower than that.

I WILL hit my goal weight!

Here's Hoping!
May 01 2009 10:44

When I hit my heaviest weight, probably six or seven years ago, I started to panic.  I kept creeping closer and closer to the three hundred pound mark.  I started noticing my blood pressure was a little high.  And of course, I couldn't do anything physical with any ease.

Since that time, I've made a series of small changes.  I stopped eating some of my favorite foods, the ones that were part of the reason why I put on so much weight during the twenty whatever years since high school/college.  I started trying to be more active.

Each of my small changes was successful, but only in a small way. 

Spring of 2007 was my first big change, my partner and I joined a local gym and we actually went.  I thought for sure this would pay off in a big way.  I guess it did in certain respects, since I felt really fit and healthy.  I could tell that my shape changed because of toning muscles.  Unfortunately, working out made me hungry all the time.  I didn't eat significantly more than usual, but it was impossible to eat less.  Between that and gaining muscle mass, my weight decreased very slowly, which was disappointing to say the least.

Summer of 2008 I wrenched some ligaments in my knee, which made working out painful.  The final month of my gym membership I probably went all of five times, since even ten minutes on the treadmill or eliptical left my knee aching for days.

Over the fall and winter as my knee healed, I slowly gained back around half of what I had lost.  I was starting to panic again.  I knew I needed to make a change.  I didn't want to lose all the ground I had gained.  Unfortunately, I'm an emotional eater, so being upset or unhappy or stressed just makes me want to eat more!

Then mid-March I was hit with the worst stomach flu I've ever had.  I was out of work for a full week.  For three days all I could take in was water, gatorade, and clear fruit juice.  After one week of feeling absolutely horrible, I had lost ten pounds.  The second week I was still probably taking in less than a thousand calories a day, still not feeling completely recovered.  That week I lost another five pounds.

I wouldn't want to repeat the experience ever again, but it definitely gave me the jump start I needed to overhaul my eating habits.  Since then, I have continued to lose, an average of about a pound a week. 

I'm optimistic that the changes I've made are changes I can sustain.  Here's hoping!