Wagon Jumpers - June 21 - 27th, 2009 (Closed, Waiting List Available)
Welcome
(If you are interested in being on the waiting list, please read below and e-mail me. We currently have 3 people on the waiting list.)
Welcome to the Wagon Jumpers weekly thread. We are a group of CC members who have identified that one of our main challenges with achieving our weight loss, maintenance or general health goals is consistency.
This thread is designed to encourage long term commitment to our goals by publicly declaring them and asking the other members of this thread to hold us accountable. The primary focus of wagon jumpers is not how much weight you have lost, or need to loose, but what you need to do on a daily basis to meet your long term goals.
There are two rules for Wagon Jumpers:
1. All members must post once per week between Sunday and Friday.
2. All members must check the thread for members who have not posted by Saturday (a short list is posted on Thursday) or are on the MIA list on Sunday and send them a polite and positive message to stay involved in the group and on track with their goals.
If you would like to be a member of this thread please see the guidelines below and send me a PM if you are still interested (there may be a waiting list).
Medium Size Group = Some Time Commitment
The original idea of Wagon Jumpers was to create a close community where participants could get to know each other and hopefully form virtual-life and perhaps even physical-life bonds to create a support network as they attempted long term weight loss.
We quickly discovered that this was impossible with an 'always open' group as there were too many people coming and going. For this reason the group is finding its optimum level is between 20 and 25 participants.
A medium sized group means that we have an active thread that produces between 30 - 45 posts per week. Members do not need to read / respond to every post every week. I do notice that those who respond regularly do tend to keep their goals top of mind, and have a better chance to achieve them. I estimate the average time spent by an active member on Wagon Jumpers to be between 1-2 hours per week.
If you are looking for an always open group on CC there are several that operate by different weight criteria, similar motivational patterns etc... There are also many small groups that cap their numbers between 4-10 people to keep the group more intimate, and easier for members to keep up with.
Interested in Joining?
General Guidelines for Joining
1. Are you a wagon jumper?
Do you know how to loose weight, you often have success but then you find yourself loosing interest in your plan, or sabotaging your plan. It's not the "how" to loose weight that is the problem, it's the "how" to stay motivated.
2. Do you have a long way to go?
This group is designed so that members can get to know each other and support each other. Ideally you are planning to be a CC member and part of this forum for at least 6 months or more to achieve your goals and hopefully stay in motivation for a further 6 months or more.
Yes. This is, a long term plan.
3. Do you have the time?
This is a medium sized group, the thread does move fairly quickly each week. If you do not have regular internet access this is likely not the group for you.
Still interested?
Send Supersized a PM. (Please do not reply on the thread)
An overview will be sent to you, you will have a chance to ask questions and an invitation will be sent to you once a spot is open.
Google Group
We have recently added a google group as an option for members, past members, and members on the waiting list. If you would like access to the google group (and are in one of the above categories) send a message to beaglesmuggler (at) roger.com with your username and e-mail address and I will add you to the google group.
Wagon Jumpers Participants
Year 1 - Week 7 Riders:
Supersized 
(myself)
Year 1 - Week 3 Riders:
Week 51 Riders:
Week 49 Riders:
Week 48 Riders:
Week 45 Riders:
Week 39 Riders:
Week 35 Riders:
Week 31 Riders:
Week 30 Riders:
Week 29 Riders:
Week 28 Riders - Congratulations on 7 Months!:
Week 27 Riders:
Week 24 Riders - Congratulations on 6 Months!:
Week 23 Riders:
Week 6 Riders:
Week 4 Riders - Congratulations on 1 Month!:
Week 3 Riders:
Week 1 Riders:
Missing In Action:
Missing In Action - 1 Week:
Missing In Action - 2 Weeks:
Current Membership: 21
Current Waiting List: 3
Outstanding Wait List Invites: 0
12 Week CONSISTENCY GOALS
(as set w/o April 5th, 2009)
By June 27th, I will be...
Msmeg1984 - Maintenance: I will continue to eat less than 1800 cals/day on average New: Exercise at least 3x a week at least 9 of the 12 weeks.
Defrog3 - To continue eating healthfully for me and my little fetus, which means I need to stick to 2,000 balanced calories/day. My NEW goal is to start exercising regularly, meaning moving my butt in some fashion for 30 minutes, 3 days a week.
Cawilder - NEW: Attain a 30 / 30 / 40 food combo 80% of the time. MAINTENANCE: Running @ least 5 hours / week and 2X weight lifting.
Unlimitedana - Maintenance goal: Eat 1550-1650 cals a day. New Goal Achieve the 40-40-20 at least two days per week.
Raven21 - 1. Exercise at least 3 x a week (maintenance) 2. Average daily calorie intake of 1450-1650 (new)
Figurethefat - For maintenance: I will continue to complete a minimum of 1,500 exercise minutes per month. New goal: I will drink at least 1.5 litres of water per day.
Supersized - MAINTENANCE: Continue to eat at or below 2,000 cal/day average for at least 6 of 12 weeks, and never over 2,500 cal/day average. NEW: start going to the gym (again), and achieve at least 4 weeks where I attend the gym 3x/week.
Lam7 - NEW GOAL: Participate in our Navan Walking Club 10 Week Program (Tuesdays) starting April 21-June 26; as well as attend 6 "Spring into Spring" Interval Classes which will run on Thursday evenings starting April 9th, 2009.
Constanza - (new) Eat an average of 1700 calories/day. (maintenance) Exercise at least twice weekly (calculated by average)
Kyashiis - Maintenance goal:Exercise for a minimum of 20 minutes a day 5 days a week. New goal: I will zig-zag on my food intake consistently throughout the week and end up with an average daily calorie count of 1,200 cals.
Nannygabber - Maintenance goal of doing NROLFW 3x per week with an allowance of two weeks slack for this 12-week session.
Pelkeyjm - Maintenance: Exercise a minimum of 30 minutes at least 3x per week. New Goal: Log ALL food on calorie count.
Previous Threads:
Wagon Jumper - June 14 - 20th, 2009
Wagon Jumpers - June 7 - 13th, 2009
Wagon Jumpers May 31 - June 6th, 2009
Wagon Jumpers May 24 - 30th, 2009
Wagon Jumpers - May 17 - 23rd, 2009
Wagon Jumpers - May 10 - 16th, 2009
Wagon Jumpers - May 3 - 9th, 2009
Wagon Jumpers - April 26 - May 2nd, 2009
Wagon Jumpers - April 19 - 25th, 2009
Wagon Jumpers - April 12 - 18th, 2009
Wagon Jumpers - April 5 - April 11th, 2009
Wagon Jumpers - March 29 - April 4th, 2009
Wagon Jumpers - March 22 - 28th, 2009
Wagon Jumpers - March 15 - 21st, 2009
Wagon Jumpers - March 8 - 14th, 2009
Wagon Jumpers - March 1 - 7th, 2009
Wagon Jumpers - February 22 - 28th, 2009
Wagon Jumpers - February 15 - 21st, 2009
Wagon Jumpers - February 8 - 14th, 2009
Wagon Jumpers - February 1 - 7th, 2009
Wagon Jumpers - January 25 - 31st, 2009
As always all members are encouraged to tag this thread so that it is easy to find.
Weekly Topic: Part 1: GOAL EVALUATION
1. GOAL EVALUATION
This is the moment of truth for those of us who set 12 week goals on April 5th, 2009. Let us know if you succeeded, and what helped you succeed. If you did not succeed what will you change next time to bring success?
Msmeg1984 - 75% 
Maintenance: I will continue to eat less than 1800 cals/day on average New: Exercise at least 3x a week at least 9 of the 12 weeks.
Defrog3 - 75%
To continue eating healthfully for me and my little fetus, which means I need to stick to 2,000 balanced calories/day. My NEW goal is to start exercising regularly, meaning moving my butt in some fashion for 30 minutes, 3 days a week.
Cawilder - 60% 
NEW: Attain a 30 / 30 / 40 food combo 80% of the time. MAINTENANCE: Running @ least 5 hours / week and 2X weight lifting.
Maintenance goal: Eat 1550-1650 cals a day. New Goal Achieve the 40-40-20 at least two days per week.
Raven21 - 50%
1. Exercise at least 3 x a week (maintenance) 2. Average daily calorie intake of 1450-1650 (new)
Figurethefat - 93%
For maintenance: I will continue to complete a minimum of 1,500 exercise minutes per month. New goal: I will drink at least 1.5 litres of water per day.
Supersized -25%
MAINTENANCE: Continue to eat at or below 2,000 cal/day average for at least 6 of 12 weeks, and never over 2,500 cal/day average. NEW: start going to the gym (again), and achieve at least 4 weeks where I attend the gym 3x/week.
Lam7 - SUCCESS!!
NEW GOAL: Participate in our Navan Walking Club 10 Week Program (Tuesdays) starting April 21-June 26; as well as attend 6 "Spring into Spring" Interval Classes which will run on Thursday evenings starting April 9th, 2009.
Constanza - 50%
(new) Eat an average of 1700 calories/day. (maintenance) Exercise at least twice weekly (calculated by average)
Kyashiis - 80%
Maintenance goal:Exercise for a minimum of 20 minutes a day 5 days a week. New goal: I will zig-zag on my food intake consistently throughout the week and end up with an average daily calorie count of 1,200 cals.
Nannygabber - 91%
Maintenance goal of doing NROLFW 3x per week with an allowance of two weeks slack for this 12-week session.
Pelkeyjm - 68%
Maintenance: Exercise a minimum of 30 minutes at least 3x per week. New Goal: Log ALL food on calorie count.
Weekly Topic: Part 2: New Goal Questions / Rules
We will be setting new 12 week goals next week. This week is a chance to reveiw the goal setting rules, to ask questions about the general process, and to post a draft goal to see if it meets the rules. Goals posted this week are for question purposes only, and will not appear on next week's thread
The Rules
1. Goal Setting is Optional
Goal setting is a motivational part of this group, if it does not work for you as a motivational tool, please feel free to be a cheerleader for those who do set goals.
2. Goals must be posted on the June 28 - July 4th, 2009 thread
No exceptions. Editing the goals into the main thread is a time commitment for me, so I ask that anyone who wants to participate makes sure that the goals are up on the thread between June 28th and July 4th... goals posted earlier or later will not be in the introduction thread, although do feel free to update the group on your progress as we go along.
3. Consistency Based Goals Only
While we all have goals that read: I want to be X lbs or Y size... these are not things that you directly control, they are results of your consistent work to lead a healthier lifestyle. Tell us what you are going to DO to improve your health, are you going to eat better, exercise, drink more water, take walks, run, bike, climb, do yoga, meditate, breath....
4. Measurable Goals
At the end of 12 weeks you will need a quantifiable way to say if you succeeded or not... Saying you are going to "eat better" is a broad objective, and depending on your mood on the 12th week you may be overly optimistic or pessamistic about your success. On the other hand if you say you are going to "eat 1 fruit and 1 vegetable every day" or "eat at an aveage of 2,000 cal/day" or "limit myself to no more than 1 serving of red meat each week" these goals you can measure success against objectively.
5. One New Goal + One Maintenance Goal (only)
This is always the single most difficult rule for members, old members let new members know how helpful this has been in the long run. Wagon jumpers are notorious for making well formed elaborate plans that we inevitably can't or don't follow through on.
You are 100% free to have tens, hundreds or thousands of goals for yourself, however we will prioritize and limit here.
A maintenance goal must be something that you already have well in hand, that you are not currently struggling to incorporate into your daily life. A maintenance goal functions as a benchmark as you add a new goal to see if adding a new goal throws off your already established habits.
I HIGHLY recommend that new mebmers stick to 1 new goal and avoid the maintenance goal altogehter.
Make sure if you are submitting two goals that you highlight which is the maintenance goal so that I don't come back to you and ask you to pick one new goal only.
6. Keep it simple
A goal should be easily able to articulate in one shot sentence, if I need a calculator to figure out your goal or if it takes a paragraph to explain it's likely too complicated for you to follow for 12 weeks.
7. Questions?
Now is the time to ask, submit a draft goal, ask members for their advice and experiences on goals.
8. Have Fun!
And that's and order! Remember goal setting is supposed to be affirming and positive, not oppressive and punishing. Keep your goals simple and achievable, it's remarkably hard to keep even simple promises for 12 weeks, but intensely rewarding if you do.
Goal Evaluation
I completely fell off the food wagon when I tried to add exercise. To be fair I think this is more a function of getting a new job, and looking for a new apartment. In any case I did have 2 weeks that were not fully measured for food, 1 week that was over 2,500 cal/day average and the rest which were hovering around 2,200 cal/day averages never quite making it to my 2,000 cal/day average goal.
On the exercise I did moderately better making it to the gym 3x/week for 2 weeks, and on most others missing it by a day.
New Goal
Maintenance: Continue to log my calories on cc every day, for at least 9 out of 12 weeks.
New: Make it to the gym 3x/week for 4 weeks.
I'm falling back to my previous food goal of simply logging the calories for maintenance since I failed to achieve the calorie goal. Despite not achieving the calorie goal I have been having some weight loss success which I think is due to exercising more, and keeping my calories at a maintenance level rather than binging (3,000 - 4,000 cal/day in my case).
I am hoping that so long as I log my calories I'll keep them in the 2,000 - 2,500 range, although this is not an official goal... if I can organize my scheudle during the summer to get the gym back into my life then I think I can go for a calorie based food goal next round.
Oh I'm so excited!!! My first goal with the group! I know this sounds silly but this is one of the greatest parts for me of this group. I belong to other groups on other sites and the thing that I get grumpy about is the lack of accountability with goals. It doesn't matter if you make your goal, but to say "I'm going to exercise 3x a week for 45 min each time" and then find it's not working, and so two weeks later say "Ok ok nevermind I'm changing it..." It frustrates me personally because I really prefer the group mentality of holding one another and holding yourself accountable. I don't know if I'm making sense.
So maybe you guys could help me with some goal setting? I really only want to pick one, and I think for me I'm ALREADY doing these things:
1. NROLFW 2 to 3x a week
2. Callanetics at least 2x a week
3. At least 2 to 3 ltrs of liquids a day (even though I already expressed my opnion on that lol)
4. Staying below my carb goals
Now, my biggest concern is that I seem to be afraid to introduce new carbs to my diet. That's the reason Atkins and other LC plans "fail" for most people - they don't add new foods back in and they stay at "Induction" levels. I think my new goal needs to be to stay under 30 NET carbs a day but to continue to expermient with new, whole foods to see if any of them cause stalls in my weight loss, cravings or bloating. This should then give me a pretty solid "scientific" basis as I start to increase the actual carb count, knowing which foods work for me and which don't, and then worry (maybe in the next 12 weeks) about the numbers game.
So how might I say that?
Goal: To stay under 30 NET carbs per day while each week continuing to experiment with new foods, in the following order: more vegetables, yogurt/fresh dairy, nuts, berries, alcohol, beans, starchy veggies, fruits and last, grains.
Is there a way in that goal to incorporate me cutting back on drinking? I swear that's my real downfall *sigh*
Dove I actually like goal 2 the best... I think goal 4 may be one to try next time.
Here is the thinking:
1. NROLFW - unless you are doing this as your specific program (MsMeg, Julie) then you want to have some variety in your work outs. Goal number 2 allows you to count any NROLFW days as calisthenics days, but gives you the flexability to have a week where you don't do any NROLFW work outs but you do do calisthenics work outs. It also allows you to try a variety of workouts which tends to be important for most people in their fist goal streatch.
3. I have a personal bias against the water goals, it's really beacuase I never manage to do it, so I don't touch it with a 10 ft. poll. Feel free to ignore my opiniong on the difficulty of getting enough water, especially since you are in a very warm climate you likely do not have this problem.
4. From your description on the carbs it sounds like you are in a place where you need some room to experiment, I think locking yourself into a number may prove very hard and frustrating. If you do hit plateaus or gain, you my take it down too far... if you spend this 12 weeks working on your exercise officially and unofficially playing with introducing new carbs and seeing what the effects are I think you will be well set up to se the exercise as a maintenance goal next time and know which carbs you want to add and watch that you are not over or under indulging on the carbs as the new goal next time.
Wow. Goals. I've always fallen off the wagon because of not respecting goals. Brrrr....
So I guess that my biggest downfall is exercise, when I'm busy, I tend to slack off. Also I'm thinking that since I'm vertiginously approaching vacation time and even if I mostly work during vacation there'll still be a total of three weeks where I'll find excuses.
Camping on the beach will be simple, I'll just do running some Pilates and regular no-weight calisthenics in the mornings or late afternoons. But the business of going in the middle of mountainside nowhere to teach little kids English, that truly scares me in terms of keeping in line with exercise. (I'll try some hiking, probably).
Anyway a fitness goal is probably something I need to focus on more, until I get it in my blood.
I was thinking I could set my goal around at least 3-4 x per week at least 30 minutes of exercise of any kind. (But privately I'll try to vary my workouts and maybe incorporate some weights).
As for the future, maybe the next goal should be taking up weightlifting. (I've never tried it, partly because there's no gym close to my house - I live in the suburbs. And I've seen that so many of you do New Rules of Weightlifting for Women and was planning on getting the book).
There's always the option of picking a food goal. Mine would be sticking to a 1200-1350 (1350 is my BMR) plan with a cheat meal and cutting back on bad carbs the rest of time.
Which would be better in your experience? Am I too optimistic? Is it too complicated? Over the top? Verbose? Restrictive? Ugh.
@Dove Drinking with friends, my kryptonite. And for all the graduation parties coming up... Oh, I'm truly freaked.
Oh, snap I forgot to mention I've been diagnosed with bipolar disorder.
This means I'm on some kind of medication that makes weightloss harder (it changes the way I metabolize carbs in that it slows it down a bit... I haven't really gained weight because of it, but losing hasn't been too easy).
Also, from what I read, exercise seems to help with the sleep problems that bipolars have. (God knows, sometimes they're unbearable) And might be a good way to counter depression symptoms in the depressive phase of the disorder.
Gah. I'm confused. :)
I'm baaaaaaaackkkkk!!! What a haul it has been! Let me give a little synopsis of the past few months....
I suffer from kidney disease...which led to kidney failure....which as of last October led to a transplant. YAY!....or so I thought! No one explained that a transplant is a treatment, not a cure and that it could lead to all sorts of other problems (which mine did). So after several months of fighting rejection, infections, unexplained illnesses and thoughts of ending it all, I am back amongst the living and weightwise I am a MESS! :) But I am still smiling and thankful to be upright and taking breath!
I joined Wagon Jumpers almost a year ago at a weight of 206 lbs and being part of this forum was helping greatly. Now that it has all gone askew I gained it all back and THEN some (216). I'm going to ask for much help here as I cannot take the "normal" steps that others would. Those who know me would tell you NOTHING about me fits into a "normal" category!
I have no issues with intake of water....I am required to drink 2 liters a day..so I do. My diet has many limitations....here we go....fats, sugar, sodium, potassium, whole grains, nuts, seeds...oh so many things. Potassium is the most difficult because it involves fruits, green leafy vegetables all those things you usually load up on when cutting the calories. Also to top it all off the docs want me to have 90 grams of protein a day. I wouldn't typically have issue with this as I love beans and legumes in any way shape or form...but alas, they are high in potassium. See the problem? I am open to any ideas or thoughts you might have. I look at food now not as food, but as the amount of potassium, protein or fat it contains. I eat very limited types of things and I am bored out of my mind.
I'm happy to be back and what a great time. Just in time to set some new goals. YIKES! I haven't had goals in months. Oh yeah...to top it all off....one of my post-transplant medications is prednisone. Steroids are NOT a weight loss friend, but I think by getting back into the groove with ya'll can only help!
Hello wenchie and welcome back! (even if I'm new and didn't know you before your vacation from wagon jumpers).
I have no experience with post transplant nutrition or low potassium foods, but I found this link in one of the Ask Mary columns here and figured, what the heck, you might've missed it.
http://www.kidney.org/ATOZ/atozItem.cfm?id=10 3
There's this resource about leaching vegetables which apparently takes some of the potassium out of the veggies and maybe that could be of help.
Anyway, having fun doesn't always revolve around eating fun(or so I've been trying to tell myself whenever I'm short on cash and that happens often nowadays).
Maybe if you told us about what you eat precisely/are allowed to/ we could come up with ideas and brainstorm a virtual potluck.
Nice to meet you,
Meri
On my way out the door...but Callanetics isn't callesthenics. It's a DVD from 1986 by this chick that sort of incorporates pilates and weird poses with tiny pulses and stretches and I find it a really great compliment to NROLFW.
I don't care about #3 either, I just automatically in my climate with my workouts get what I need in water.
1 and 2 I already do as habit...er so I'm stuck on goals. Any other thoughts? I really want to have some accountabiity with my carb intake, as in eating MORE becuase I keep getting nervous and sliding back into limited food choices. Good thing I have a week to figure it out lol.
Sorry for not responding to others, we're in the midst of a huge festival in Porto Novo and I'm late for the horse races!
Hi,
I think I did OK.
I was probably 60% overall which considering my mother died and my husband started a new job, etc. I think for me is pretty good.
I have found that I REALLY NEED TO LOG MY FOOD!!! So, that is my downfall and I am not accountable to myself.
On the exercise front I have been running and kept up my running except for a hip bursistis that sidelined me a for a week.
My new goals will probably be:
NEW: Log my food 85% of the time. MAINTENANCE: Running @ least 5 hours / week and 2X weight lifting.
Meri... I am a bipolar as well. I am on Lithium (a very old drug but IMHO one of the best!!) Yes, the meds make it harder to lose weight and also to maintain a smaller weight. But, I would prefer to be stable and slightly overweight than the alternatives. I was diagnosed @ 36 yr old so I had relatively little recidivism.
I am almost off my bagel and cream cheese passion... I know it is terrible - I am down to 1 per week. I account for them but they are costly on the calories. Other than that I am doing pretty well.
I think I have lost another few pounds but my pants are still a tad tight.
Our family did a killer hike yesterday in the Columbia Gorge - (It is the Columbia river which splits Washington State from Oregon) - it is called Dog Mountain. Approx 8 miles where 4 miles are straight up and yep, you guessed it, 4 are straight down. Our dog, Katie, was exhausted by the end!
I just ran 6 1/2 miles this morning and boy my quads were killing..
Take care.
Carol
Original Post by wenchie58:
I'm baaaaaaaackkkkk!!! What a haul it has been!
Wenchie, great to see you're back and doing OK, given what you've been through! I hope that we can help you reach your goals!
Weekly topic:
Goal evaluation--I think I can give myself a 75%--I'm going to knock off 25% b/c I haven't been tracking the numbers, though... I've been moving & stretching a lot, to keep myself active, and I've been eating rather well. I've gained weight normally for now, too, which is a good thing. I was terrified about being one of those people who gain 50 pounds w/their pregnancy!
New Goal--I think I want to stay on with my same goal this time around. I'm in the final trimester, and well, I'm getting all of the associated lovely symptoms--swelling feet, heartburn/indigestion, joint pain (my pelvis has been killing me!). I'm comfortable with where I'm at for now, I don't think I want to add anything else on at this point.
OK, I need to go now. Had my baby shower this weekend and friends from out of state stay with us. Now I have to fit my weekend chores into the next 4 hours! hahaha!
Carol Fortunately, my bipolar disorder isn't Bipolar I (which is the really freaky one). All I take is a rather small dose of Depakene (mood stabilizer) and I'm hoping it won't make losing weight too daunting. But you're right, I'd rather be calm and learn to control myself and as the doctor said gradually wean myself off the drug, than be raving and throwing tantrums and rollercoasting through moods (Sounds kinda like yo-yo dieting.) This moderation thing is thoroughly not my style, however.
Defrog The best of luck and health with the baby on the way! :)
Meri - Yep, and right now we are in full swing of festival season in Cape Verde. Okay so fesitval season is really all year, but the big "saint day" festas are going on right now. 3 weeks ago was the festa in Cocouli, 2 weeks ago was my friends going away party, last weekend was the festa in Paul, and this whole week basically in through next weekend is the festa in my town. Basically every night there has been music and dancing from about 8pm til 2am, and on the weekend there has been stuff going on all day and all night (last night we got home at 5am, tonight we're going out at 11 and will be out til probably 4 again). After a full night of partying on Monday, Tuesday we'll drive 20km away and then WALK back again as a huge procession carrying the San Joao statue...stopping along the way at every single town to eat and drink. It's a 5 hour celebration, and then you get to town and start to party again and party in to the next day. Then Wednesday the saint RETURNS to the neighboring town, so that night we all go up for ANOTHER party there.
The thing is...there is just no way I would miss any of it. THIS is Cape Verde, this is a huge part of the culture and weight or not, I will regret not participating in this for the rest of my life. I have, however, made some rules about the drinking...only 2 glasses of wine except on Tuesday, the big day, where the rules go out the window (not rules about food, I'm great about those, just about drinking.
PHEW!
Also Meri and Cawilder - I was diagosed with bipolar at one point and put on so many meds...then a doctor said Dove, you're not bipolar, you have a personality disorder, which sounds icky but is so much more easily controlled. Iv'e been on Lamictal, an anti seizure med, for about 6 or 7 years now, and am so glad it's under control. But I can relate to both the stress and frustration of figuring out waht's wrong, and willing to trade a bit of sanity for a few extra pounds lol
Wenchie - Welcome back! WOW that is quite the list of challenges to your diet. So I had a couple of thoughts. As far as protein, it's not too hard to get in 90g if you eat lean meats. Chicken, turkey, tuna, lean beef, lean cuts of pork. If you are having trouble with those, protein shakes are a great way to up your intake. Whey protein is cheapest and I think best tasting and fastest acting, but Casein has it's place as well and sticks with you longer and is absorbed more because it moves more slowly. Maybe you could give us a list of foods you can eat and ones you can't and we can find ways to make your diet more interesting? I'm not sure what foods have potassium and what foods don't. Do you have macro nutrient goals besides protein? Like what is your limit of fat? Do you have a limit on carbs? Which carbs are OK and which are no-nos?
CaWilder - I also feel you on logging. I completely do better when I log, even though I'm really only counting carbs. It helps me keep track of things I might need to tweak in the future and helps me figure out what carbs might be "hidden" in my foods.
supersized-good job with keeping up with the exercising for the most part. At least you worked at the eating right while working and exercising. The fact you were still within your goal reach was a great start especially with the changes in your life.
dove-combine thee exercise goals and the liquid goal seems more set then the carb goal. You can carbs that are similar to your current carbs. Or look at the "healthier" carbs and work them in slower.
meri-start slow and find a place where you are comfortable exercise. You'll find what works.
wenchie-welcome back. What about protein shakes? What kind of meats can you have? Maybe a nutritionist could help with the recommendations. Sorry, I'm no good at helping when it comes to food.
cawilder-I'm proud of you. You manage to do more than half your goal with everything that has been happening with you.
defrog-woohoo 75%. That's great. having with the baby shower.
My goals: log 1700 calories a week and workout 6x a week with a combination of weight training and cardio.
Hi,
I get to be one of those bipolars who takes a cocktail of drugs... Lithium, Neurontin, and Lamictal and each one I adjust on a daily basis for how I am feeling. It has taught me to check in with myself and how emotionally I am feeling.
Dove - it was funny because for years (like 18 of 'em) they said I had a personality issue and more therapy was the ticket and I kept squinting at them and saying - are you sure that I don't have manic depressive illness and they would squint back and tell me that it was impossible because I had not tried to jump off a building and think I could fly... So I had to laugh when I read your note.
Tie gurl: Thanks for the atta' girl - I think you mean to say to 1700 calories per day.. right - 1600 calories per week is really low...
Wenchie - Welcome back. My cousin's father (it is a weird connection..) had a kidney transplant and one year I made Thanksgiving dinner and he had totally separate dishes from the rest of us... It made me appreciate what transplant patients go through. I can find out what foods that he eats and send you a private message. Yes, prednisone is definitely not a weight loss friend - people who have taken have it said that they would finish one meal and they were still hungry. Maybe you can google and find out how to counteract that - I know it is a big problem.
Goal evaluation: I chose a water goal of 1.5 litres per day. I would say I've done that about 85% of the time. IMO setting any kind of a daily goal can lead to disappointment -- it's very difficult to hit 100% on a daily goal! Some days are bound to be out of control! My maintenance goal is much better, I've hit my 1,500 minutes (and more) every month no problem, and actually hit 1,750 twice.
I'm going to continue with my maintenance goal of 1,500 minutes of exercise per month. A monthly figure allows for days when the exercise just isn't happening :) I can always catch up, or build up and surplus then slack off.
For my new goal I think I'd like to incorporate something about running the 5ks. Like run a 5k at least 2 times a week, or maybe at least 10 times a month? Something along those lines.
Welcome to meri, and it's good to have you back wenchie :)
Good Healthgain Morning to Everyone~!
Goals, goals... already? Where does the time go? LOL - In evaluating my success/failure percentage, I have made it at 91 percent. Over all, considering that I will make it to lift 3x this week, I have missed the mark 3 weeks total, but having given myself 2 weeks pass for moving, I only have to count one. Granted, all those weeks missed DID contain at least 4 days of exercise, but because two of the days are Zumba class, they do not count toward my NROLFW goal of 3x per week. (Lesson learned: LESS SPECIFIC is better!) SO, I missed the goal technically, yet I do not in the least feel as if I have failed. If anyone had asked me to go to a gym to work out a year ago even ONCE per week, I'd have told them they were a few bricks short of a load.... and I made it there at least 4 times every week, except for the two permitted passes.
I also have some other great news! It was my birthday a couple weeks ago, and my son bought me a scale. One of those with a body fat % meter as well as a water % meter. I am shocked to know that I have surpassed my first number goal, and I might say... I've managed to do it with very little anxiety or aggravation. It has simply been a focus on the journey as opposed to the goal! I have gone from 196 lbs (Jan 1 09) to 168 lbs. Not quite 30 lbs (only two more, but who's really counting that? LOL!) I waited to report this to you all because I wanted to be sure I had made it officially below 170, which was my first mental hurdle. AND, it was close enough to my birthday to give me reason to be very happy!
All those clothes I cried about not being able to wear in this post http://caloriecount.about.com/dont-cryin-ft11 5595 - I can wear them again. Some fit perfectly, and others are even a little loose. I would like to see myself lose another 30. Regardless of how long that takes, I am confident it can happen. Why am I so confident? Primarliy because of my eating habits. It has become ultra-apparent that the diet is the crux of fat burning. I believe I am eating the way a 140 lb person should eat, so I figure eventually, I will weigh 140. (For example!) Does that make sense? While truly the number of pounds is not the ultimate goal, merely a measuring guide. The ultimate goal is feeling and looking better. While I feel 100% better, and really have no idea how I could possibly feel ANY more of that, I still have a couple little jelly rolls I'd like to see vanquished.
I just want to take a moment to thank all of you, especially Sara - for the ongoing support, encouragement, motivation, and inspiration that this group offers. I would not have been able to accomplish any of this without first having known YOU!
I am thinking that my eating habits are pretty much under control. While I allowed myself to free-fly with my food intake this last 12 weeks, I managed to keep eating the same foods as I was before, and I remained on the path of losing. I do feel that I am a little off-kilter with my macronutrients. SO, I am considering, because I need to log again to make sure, that I will make this a maintenance (or would it be new since I didnt do it the las 12?) goal for the next session.
I don't feel 100% confident that my NROLFW is 100% under control, so I am uncertain of how to incorporate this into my top two, because I really want to make sure I do it, but I also am considering something alltogether different, like taking up a new sport or dance?? I know I need to lift to maintain my muscle mass, but I also do not want to grow bored with my cardio routine, as I know I need it because I am still in loss mode. I will make considerations this week, and let you know. (I don't mean to say I could ever be bored with Zumba, I just mean it is SUMMER! And there is so much more I can do!)
Additionally, I will finish my NROLFW sometime this session, and will want to find an additional program of similar sorts to take its place. Probably P90X. Plus there will be a vacation week to FL in there somewhere...
I did want to reply to Kathy's comment from last week, it made me laugh! Kathy, while I GO to Zumba, I never once said I could move like that! LOLOL! I try hard, but I don't look nearly as good as the chick in that video. Hehehe... and... still considering taking up Zumba teaching... not solid on that yet. I am figuring however, that if I am teaching the class, I'd kinda have to show up. LOL!... a little active motivation there.
I have read all the posts so far, and wish I had a few minutes right now to respond to each. I, however have gotten so caught up in my own newscast, that it is now time for me to go to work. I will be back shortly!
Have a Healthgain Day, All!!
~Julie
Meri I think exercise is a good one for you to focus on for your first goal, you seem to have the most pre-planning around it. The only suggestion I might make is that since it IS summer, and also your first challenge with this group you may want to ask yourself how many of the 12 weeks will you consider a success.
Many people find having a few weeks of slack is the big difference between achieving the goal and not. This is particularly important if you miss a week early on in the goal to keep you motivated. If your goal is all 12 weeks, and you miss your 3-4 days in week 3 then it's hard to be motivated for weeks 4-12... on the other hand if you have 3-4 weeks of slack as long as you get in your weeks 3/4 of the time then you still can succeed and move it to a maintenance goal next time.
I also suggest that people toying with a new goal for next time test run it in your 12 weeks on your own, see if the weight lifting (with the logistics difficulties) or the calories or carbs is more realistic for you to be able to achieve.
Looks like we've started quite a discussion on mood disorders (manic-depression / bipolar runs in my family, although I have not been diagnosed myself). That's one of the things I like about this group is looking at the broader health picture and that health, weightloss, fitness are not a one-size-fits-all model, finding out what others are dealing with provides knowlege and insight for us all.
Vicki Welcome Back! I'm so happy that you are slowly making your way through this transition. I remember when my mother was recovering from cancer surgery, we had to jugle a low particle diet (colon surgery - no things with membranes, i.e. peppers, beans... no small grains: rice, couscous.... no leafy greens....) a low gas diet (again no beans, no cabage, and a whole hoast of gas causing veggies)... and a diabetic diet (low sugar so on and so forth).... I think she lived off of yoghurt and digestive biscuits for close to 8 months, she was going out of her mind! I hope we've got some good starts with the lean meats and protein shakes, it may be a case of you providing some samples, us throwing out suggestions and then you double checking them.
Do you have access to a nutritionist? I got very frustrated with the hosptial staff at one point because one day they would send up a post-surgery diet (which was not diabetic or low particle) the next a diabetic diet that didn't suit the other two... eventually I got an appointment with a nutritionist to come to the room which really solved a lot of problems with the hospital, if we had held onto her longer we likely could have gotten a better idea for meal planning with more variety.
Dove Opps sorry, no idea about the DVD.... the biggest factor in the goal is making sure it is something that works for you and will motivate you... if you feel ready to do the carb goal and think that is the one you really want to check yourself on then go for it. In your original post you sounded unsure of a direction with the carb goal and the 'how to' mechanics, whereas you had a solid plan for the exercise. If you do the carbs I'd basically suggest giving yourself enough slack to learn the plan as you go through it.
The festivals sound amazing, that is one of the things I miss the most about working in Central America are the saints day's and the huge city wide festivals. Have a wonderful time!!!
Carol I'm the same, as soon as I stop logging my food it just creeps back up.... I think I need to resign myself to the fact that I need to log the food to loose the weight then work on a plan to wean myself off logging so that I can maintain the weight without the crutch... but if I go for step 2 before I complete step 1 it's really just me sabotaging myself. In truth, most of the time when I'm not logging it's because I don't want to see what I've been putting in my body.
Your goals look good, don't forget to post them next week.
Denise That's so funny we did my cousin's baby shower this weekend as well. I think you two are due within weeks of each other. She's having a little boy, we have the new house and nursery all painted, lots of stuffed animals, books, baby clothes, and general baby paraphanilia (nail clippers, baby lotion, diaper rash cream etc...) were loaded up with a great cake. I hope your shower was wonderful! I think it's a great idea to stick with your current goals, you have a lot on your mind a lot of other things to preapare for at the moment, so staying with what you know you can do will be important.
Also, e-mail me your due date, if we suddenly don't hear from you for a week or two around that time, I want to make sure that I know to put you on 'maternity leave' for a bit.
Tiegurl I'm with Carol on the assuming you mean per day as opposed to per week... also is one of those a maintenance goal? We're limiting to one goal you already have established and one new goal.... or, only one new goal.
Laura I'll suggest this to both you and Julie, while this is a self evaluation of your goals, and you can decide that you did not do enough or could have done better, when you are so close to your goal I always need to ask.... are you sure you aren't being too hard on yourself. We wagon jumpers are often great planners, and then we fall off, but we often don't give ourself credit when credit is due. I agree daily goals are almost impossible to fulfill... I highly recommend setting any goal that is close to daily for a certain number of days per week and or a certain number of weeks out of 12. Consider if you are being a bit rough on yourself by not taking the win, and feel free to claim the success that you likely deserve.
For your new goal do you currently do running? If not, maybe ask Kayshii and or Carol for a baseline if those are achievable running goals for a beginner. If so, sounds like you have two good goals, just let mek now if you want the weekly or monthly measurement.
Julie You and Laura... 90%'s as said above are you sure you aren't being too hard on yourself? Within 9% of a 'declared win' is there any reason you aren't taking it, to me it sounds like you have met and exceeded your goals. Not only have you done the best possible given the changing life circumstances, but you have the physical proof to back it up. Again, consider it you can let yourself have this win.
I figure maintenance goals are anything that you consider yourself to already have control of. They are things that you are doing well and if you were not changing your circumstances by adding a new goal you could assume you would carry on with them successfully. The rationale behind the maintenance goal is to identify one of the things you are doing well which is most likely to slip by adding a new goal. In this way you measure both your addition and you keep track of successful habits already gained. In this way we don't end up trading off one habit for another and failing to build a lifestyle.
I think you've already answered your question on exercise above, if your maintenance is your macronutrient tracking and your new is exercise based maybe you just make it simple.... you are going to engage in an exercise activity X days / week. This gives you a lot of freedom... or if you are confident that you will continue to exercise X days / week without making that an official goal you could say that once every 2 weeks you will try a completely new form of exercise.
Cheers,
Sara.
Right 1600 per dAy. Sorry, I was sleepy when I was typing.
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