Weight Loss Journey – Taking a Break but not Stopping!

September 17, 2012March 19, 20133 Comments

I haven’t posted about my weight loss in a couple of weeks and rather than giving it up entirely, I’ve decided to take a break from obsessing about it and blogging about it for a couple of weeks. I’m very pleased to have lost 20 pounds but have sort of gotten stuck there. You can read my post where I show my before and after pictures (or more like before and during!)

I’ve been super busy training some new helpers in the shop, and going out of town for a family vacation. Plus, this weekend I have my guild’s annual retreat to look forward to.

So, while these are not excuses to give up and go crazy with my eating, I’ve tried to simply maintain good habits during this fun but busy time, but not stress about counting calories or stepping on the scale for a little while. This will also be a good chance to see if I can maintain my weight loss without having to monitor it every day!

The scary thing about this is that I could gain a lot of weight very quickly if I’m not careful – but I am NOT going to do that! After all, the weather is finally starting to cool off a little and I can finally enjoy running outside again!

Weight Loss Week 17 – Another Milestone

August 13, 2012November 28, 20137 Comments

20 Pounds Weight Loss

I can’t believe I have been working so hard for so long!

It’s been 4 months, but I have finally hit the 20 pound weight-loss mark.

I lost what I gained last week plus a little bit more to reach a total of 20.2 pounds gone forever! I still have about 16 more to go.

It took me only 5 weeks to lose the first 10 pounds, but then more than double that time to lose the next 10.

One thing I can say for sure is that I’ve learned how to persevere! Here are some “before” and “during” pictures so you can see how far I’ve come.

I’ll show my progress again in another 10 pounds.

Week 1 – The Start

10 Pounds Gone

My favorite shirt is fitting better and I had to switch to some smaller sized jeans. Whoo-hoo!

You can also see I’ve finished up a couple more quilts in the meantime.

My hair has grown a lot so as a little reward I’m getting it cut off again tonight.

Here are this week’s tips on how to continue to persevere and make it to the next weight loss goal. It will take awhile but it will be worth it.

1. See yourself in pictures. Taking pictures along the way is keeping me motivated. For a long time, I had up a “fat” picture on my fridge which made me pause every time I wanted to raid the fridge for a snack. Sometimes you can’t really tell how you look until you step back and look at those photos. Like, was I really that fat? Or, hey I look pretty good in that outfit!

2. Share With Others. If nothing else, consistently keeping up with my blog keeps me accountable. My mom has promised me a shopping trip when I get to my goal. Now she can see how hard I’m working to earn it! Plus, when I have other things to blog about, like the quilts I’m working on, it helps keep my mind off food.

Hopefully it won’t take me as long to get to the next 10 pounds….

Weight Loss Week 16 – Back on the Bandwagon!

August 6, 2012March 19, 2013Leave a comment

Boy I had a rough week! It started out great with a 2 pound weight loss last week, but then I got cocky, tired, busy and stressed, and things really went downhill! I ran 6 miles on Wednesday and then did the classic exercise blunder – I thought I could eat whatever I wanted that day!

Big Mistake! One day of bad eating turned into three, and one night of bad sleep and no exercise lasted for 2 more days. I am a stress eater and once I had fallen off the wagon, it was mighty hard to climb back on.

I was nearly on the verge of giving up when I remembered that I had to have something to write about today! So at the last minute I decided to straighten up my act. I was super good on Saturday and Sunday, did a really hard workout this morning and minimized what could have turned into a disaster. I did gain .2 pounds but earlier in the week it could have been much more. My total weight loss is 19.4 pounds so far and I am so close to 20!!

So here are this week’s tips on how not to have a repeat disaster:

1. Don’t give up – no matter what! Even though my bad day turned into a bad week, I stopped it from becoming a bad month! I reevaluated my goals for this week into something achievable, as in stopping the bloodletting and getting back on track!

2. Sleep, sleep sleep! – I’ve mentioned sleep before, but that is the number one factor for me on whether I’m able to get up the next morning and start my day off on the right track. If I don’t get a good night’s sleep, it’s nearly impossible for me to function the next day and that leads to further bad habits throughout the day.

3. Be accountable! – I don’t know how many times I’ve saved myself from quitting because I have to be accountable for my goals. My workout buddies will get mad at me if I skip out on more than a day or two of exercise. And I have 15 weeks now of blogging and journaling under my belt to catalog my weight loss journey. I can’t stop now!

I sure hope this week turns out better!

Weight Loss Week 14 – Surviving Vacation

July 23, 2012March 19, 20131 Comment

I was in vacation mode last week while we were at Hermosa Beach, California with our family. It was the best time I’d had in a long time but I still had to be careful not to throw caution to the wind and give up my healthy habits for a week.

Last Week, I lost weight before I left, and today I’m happy to report that I kept it off, and then some. I lost .6 pounds this week for a total of 17.6 pounds. I’m almost halfway to my goal! Here are a few tips on how to survive a change in routine while on vacation:

1. Eat lots of fresh produce. Early in the week we stopped at a local farmer’s market that was just a short walk from the beach. We picked up fresh fruits and veggies and used those to snack on and cook with all week. Sure, we had some treats, but we we rented a beach house that had a full kitchen and kept our eating out to a minimum!

2. Find fun ways to exercise on vacation. The boardwalk in front of the beach house included miles and miles of smooth cement for rollerblading! It was very kid friendly and safe. I also ran barefoot on the beach with my oldest son. I’ve always wanted to try that and I found that I really enjoyed it!

If I had a beach at home, I’d do this every day! I wonder if there are any beach marathons?

3. If you’ve got it, flaunt it. Well, I still have a little too much of it – that’s why I’m working so hard to lose it! But I did feel much more comfortable in my bathing suit this year. This is the suit I bought when I lost my first 10 pounds. I still have another one waiting for me when I get to the next 20!

Now that I’m home again and back to a regular routine, I hope to have another great week!

Weight Loss Week 13 – Seeing R.E.D!

July 16, 2012March 19, 2013Leave a comment

Jason and I have come up with a fun little acronym for our weight loss plan – R.E.D which stands for Rest, Exercise, and eat a healthy Diet. We have learned that if we don’t implement R.E.D, we will see red! (As in anger and frustration!!)

We have learned by experience that sleep is most important for Jason, exercise keeps me balanced in more ways than one, and we both just feel better when we eat wholesome, nutritious food.

By the way, this week I lost another pound, bringing my total weight loss to 17 pounds gone. That’s like a 6 month old baby! Here’s how I was doing last week.

So here are this week’s tips on how to implement R.E.D.

Rest – get at least 8 hours of sleep each night. I naturally wake up at about the same time each day – for some reason I can’t sleep in any more 😦 So it’s in my best interest to get to bed early if I want to feel good the next day.

Exercise – wherever and whenever I can fit it in. If I’m short on time, I’ll do little things like take the stairs instead of the escalator, and park further away in the grocery store parking lot.

Diet – not the latest “fad” diets, but instead, I like to choose good things to eat like fruits, vegetables, whole grains, lean proteins, milk, and healthy fats like olive oil, avocados and nuts. I do like treats, but try to eat them in moderation.

This week I’ll really try to stay focused as we head out for our annual beach trip. I already know what next week’s topic will be – eating well on vacation!

Weight Loss Week 11 – Summer Fun Activities

July 2, 2012March 19, 20132 Comments

I’m into my 3rd month of my weight-loss routine and am chugging along. I lost 1 pound this week for a total of 16.2 pounds gone. It’s slow but steady. You can read about last week here.

Exercise is an integral part of my daily routine. Whether for weight loss or just general fitness, I always feel better if I start my day off with a good workout. Because it’s getting hot outside, I needed to come up with some cooler summer activities.

For a nice relaxing indoor workout, I love to do yoga at least once a week.

I have a couple of workout buddies that will humor me on a regular basis. We just pop in a video and follow along.

It feels so good to stretch our muscles, especially after a hard run the day before!

On really hot days we’ll swim a few laps in the pool. Jason’s offered to be our swim coach and give us a few pointers here and there.

By the way, I’m not in any of these pictures because I’m the one taking them!

Here are this week’s tips on how to beat the summer heat while still staying active:

1. Scale down my outdoor activities. My favorite exercise is running but rather than doing a long hot run, I’ll just run around the block or two in the early morning before it gets too hot. If I do need to get in some distance, I’ll hit the treadmill at my neighborhood gym and put on some really great music on my ipod to break up the monotony.

2. Play more with the kids. My younger kids love to go to the pool every chance they get so getting in the pool and splashing around with them gets everyone moving. They like to go on bike rides too, and nothing feels cooler than the wind in your face while cycling!

3. Do it with friends. Whether it’s sewing or exercising, it’s always more fun with my pals!