Chelle 42 yr old Pagan Witch, mom of 4, living in the MidWest
willowraven's Journal
Week 7 Challenge, Part 1, Sections a through eOct 21 2006 23:31
- a) *Weight* a Minute!!!
- Do you want to gain, maintain or lose weight?
- Do you Like to Weigh yourself & How Often?
- Have you been thinking about changing what you do
- Take a moment to write down, in some personal place, just what you do, why and what you would like to change over the next 6 weeks?
- If you don't get weighed, that's ok! Sometimes it's better to put the scales in storage! The point is to figure out what you do and why! Then let's keep doing it as long as it works for us in our lives :) Everyone adjusts what they do when something quits working! Including Weighing ourselves :)
I want to lose weight until I get to my goal of approxiimately 135 lbs. Since I have never been that weight as an adult, I am keeping it a little bit flexible - I may want to go down to 130, or I may be o.k. at 140. I am using 135 lbs as an "average" for my goal weight.
As for weighing myself, I admit that since getting the newer digital scale, I will weigh myself every day, upon waking and after using the bathroom. I find that I don't hate the scale like I used to (wow I used to DREAD stepping on a scale before and would use any excuse to get out of it), however now I use it to help me be accountable to myself and for what I am doing (food, exercise, etc). And I *really* enjoy watching those numbers go DOWN!!!! What an awesome feeling to know that I am doing the work to make it do that too! It helps me to feel that *I* am in control instead of the food and the weight being in control of ME.
As for weighing myself, I admit that since getting the newer digital scale, I will weigh myself every day, upon waking and after using the bathroom. I find that I don't hate the scale like I used to (wow I used to DREAD stepping on a scale before and would use any excuse to get out of it), however now I use it to help me be accountable to myself and for what I am doing (food, exercise, etc). And I *really* enjoy watching those numbers go DOWN!!!! What an awesome feeling to know that I am doing the work to make it do that too! It helps me to feel that *I* am in control instead of the food and the weight being in control of ME.
- b) *Get Up & Move*
- Do you Exercise and How?
- Do any activity intentionally during the weekdays or on weekends?
- Have you been thinking about changing what you do?
- Take a moment to write down, in some personal place, just what you do, why and what you would like to change over the next 6 weeks?
- If you have already thought about this and intentionally avoid a formal Exercise Plan, that's ok! Sometimes it's better to just get up and move spontaneously! The point is to figure out what you do and why! Then let's keep doing it as long as it works for us in our lives :) Everyone adjusts what they do when something quits working! Including How & When we Exercise :)
Yes I do exercise, although I will admit that I could probably do more. We had to put the fitness gym on "hold" for the month of October so we could get some of our bills caught up, however as it looks now we should be able to unfreeze it in November, which means I'll be able to get back into the swing of going every other day, and I am actually looking forward to doing that. I do try to do stuff around the house to sort of 'make up' for what I haven't been doing at the gym - and I log in stuff like the time I spent doing housework and other work around the house (for example, yard work). Instead of loading all the dishes into the dishwasher, I will now stand and do some of them by hand. I know, doesn't sound like much, but for me to stand there for 15 minutes and wash them by hand means I burn a little over 100 calories, and every little bit counts!! I sometimes find myself thinking about what I can possibly do to burn off some calories - especially if I went over my calories for the day. ::blush:: I will even log in the time that my husband and I have some "fun". lol Hey, it's burning calories!!!
About a week ago I bought 3-lb hand weights and have been using them when I've been sitting around either on the computer, or watching tv. I am also looking for some basic exercises I can do at home with the weights to 'supplement' what I will be doing at the gym. I also bought a Tai Chi DVD that shows some of the basic moves. I have always wanted to learn Tai Chi and I hope that if the local Y has classes, that I can some day afford them and sign up.
It is really strange because I hated gym class as a kid. I hated everything about it. I was always the last one to be chosen for the team, and I never did anything in the class really well. I always came in last during those mile runs, and I just didn't have the talent or the quickness for the sports like the other kids did, so I just hated it. However now that I'm older, and taking more control over my life, I am finding that I want to incorporate more activities into my life, or hope to as I lose more weight. I would like to eventually take up jogging, and I would like to learn some form of martial arts. I want to get back into swimming (used to LOVE it as a kid!!) and I also have been interested in learning Tae Bo. I want to take Yoga - not just for exercising, but to help learn how to calm and de-stress myself. I find myself getting excited about wanting to learn how to do these things, and to actually get to doing them. I know that it will take some time as I wouldn't be able to do them at my current weight/size - at least not comfortably.
About a week ago I bought 3-lb hand weights and have been using them when I've been sitting around either on the computer, or watching tv. I am also looking for some basic exercises I can do at home with the weights to 'supplement' what I will be doing at the gym. I also bought a Tai Chi DVD that shows some of the basic moves. I have always wanted to learn Tai Chi and I hope that if the local Y has classes, that I can some day afford them and sign up.
It is really strange because I hated gym class as a kid. I hated everything about it. I was always the last one to be chosen for the team, and I never did anything in the class really well. I always came in last during those mile runs, and I just didn't have the talent or the quickness for the sports like the other kids did, so I just hated it. However now that I'm older, and taking more control over my life, I am finding that I want to incorporate more activities into my life, or hope to as I lose more weight. I would like to eventually take up jogging, and I would like to learn some form of martial arts. I want to get back into swimming (used to LOVE it as a kid!!) and I also have been interested in learning Tae Bo. I want to take Yoga - not just for exercising, but to help learn how to calm and de-stress myself. I find myself getting excited about wanting to learn how to do these things, and to actually get to doing them. I know that it will take some time as I wouldn't be able to do them at my current weight/size - at least not comfortably.
- c) *Eating Well & Appropriately*
- Do you know follow a formal meal plan or eat spontaneously throughout the days?
- Have you been thinking about changing what you do
- Take a moment to write down, in some personal place, just what you do, why and what you would like to change over the next 6 weeks?
- If you eat a specific way for personal, religious or health reasons and won't be changing a thing, that's ok! We all have to do what works for us! The point is to figure out what you do and why! Then let's keep doing it as long as it works for us in our lives :) Everyone adjusts what they do when something quits working! Including Weighing ourselves :)
As for eating regimens or plans, we do tend to have dinner around the
same time every evening, although I would like to try more recipes that
I have found from different dieting cookbooks and websites. I find it
harder to incorporate fresh veggies and fruits into my diet during the
winter because I am on a limited income and they tend to cost more
during the off-season, so I am hoping to do more soups and slow-cooker
recipes during the colder winter months. Being pagan, I tend to follow
the seasons anyways, so incorporating seasonal foods into my diet plans
is almost a 'spiritual' thing for me. (I know that may sound corny -
other pagans may understand what I am getting at here.) I am finding
it MUCH easier to get in all my water for the day, and in fact there
are days I am getting more than the 8 8-oz servings of water in, so I
am feeling extra good about myself then! I read an article in a
magazine a few days ago that gave even more benefits for drinking
water, based on some findings from some recent studies. Not only does
it help you to feel more full, the studies have shown that 1) we
automatically want 15% fewer calories when we have water with our
meals, 2) it gives your metabolism a boost of up to 30% for 30 minutes
after drinking 2 cups of water (so if you drink 2 cups of water every
30 minutes you could burn 30% more calories for all your waking
hours!!) 3) it "filters" excess calories if you are drinking enough as
it helps the food to flow through your intestines quicker which helps
to reduce the amount of calories that can be absorbed, 4) for women,
it helps us to break down more carbs and 5) helps everyone break down
more fat by ensuring the cells have the proper amount of fluids to
function. The article was in the October 10, 2006 issue of Woman's
World magazine. The article also goes into greater detail about how
water helps these 5 things, as well as helping to alleviate health
issues like Chronic Fatigue, kidney stones and arthritis/body aches
(including back pain). It was a very interesting article and only made
me more resolved to drinking all my water - and more! - each day!!
- d) Strive to *Be Happy*
- Enjoy!
- Do you have any other *Health* Related Goals
- Life Goals?
- Happy Making Goals?
- Now's the time to just take a minute someplace quiet and get your goals recorded somewhere :)
I've been doing that as I go along - working on my goals, what I would like to do, how I'd like to do them, and so on. It's been fun making plans. And it's been great getting control back into my own hands instead of my life being controlled by everyone - and everything - else. I like getting control over my food and my weight instead of them controlling me.
- e) Our *Daily Goals* [edited for clarity]
- No regular points this week, but won't you please do this for your own personal satisfaction!
- record what you normally do each day or week
- What would you like Change over the Next 6 weeks
- No Bonus Points this week, but won't you please keep doing your normal goals this week or try setting up goals if you haven't been using short term goals!
- each regular *goal* you do
- try 5 Goals for the week (3 daily and 2 weekly)
- No Bonus Points this week, but won't you please try 1 something *extra* goal this week?
- whatever your *heart* desires :)
- No regular points this week, but won't you please do this for your own personal satisfaction!
Daily Goals for this week
1. Continue drinking my water every day
2. Get up, get washed, get dressed
3. Try to get *some* kind of exercise or activity each day
Weekly Goal
1. To continue making healthy choices in my food and exercises
2. To not allow myself be discouraged if I have a slip up, plateau or gain
1. Continue drinking my water every day
2. Get up, get washed, get dressed
3. Try to get *some* kind of exercise or activity each day
Weekly Goal
1. To continue making healthy choices in my food and exercises
2. To not allow myself be discouraged if I have a slip up, plateau or gain
Great Job willo! Where and how do you get the nice little messages added onto your post at the end of each one? They are really cool! |
I have them loaded up to photobucket (it's free) and it will give you the HTML coding that you can just insert into your messages. (Have to preview your message before you add entry, or the little pictures will just show as the coding.) For some reason tho, you can't use them in the forums, but that's ok. Adds a little personal touch to the journal. |
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So you can log your weight -- which allows you to do the following:
- Plot your weight curve
- Analyze the trend of your weight (see under Recent in the figure above)
- Determine the projected target date (see under Overall in the figure above)