This morning's weigh-in was 180 on the nose: down 1.4 for the week and 93 overall. That puts me exactly 1 pound from my 4th 10% goal.
I'm just pleased that I managed to avoid gaining weight through both Hallowe'en and my birthday, honestly.
Of course, I'm about to go out of town for four days, which upsets both my exercise and eating schedules, so I'm probably not expecting to hit that goal next week. On the other hand, I'll be doing a fair amount of walking on this trip, and the relatives I'm staying with are used to be sort of health-nut-y the last time I checked, so it's possible that I'll be able to stay on plan and hit it. You never know!
After that, the next big hurdle is Thanksgiving. I'm planning on bringing roasted pumpkin soup and the Weight Watchers recipe for candied yams, to help reduce the damages, but I think aside from that and some common-sense damage control (have a glass of water before eating and take big servings of the soup and veggies to help fill me up, be the one to get up and chase the kids after dessert so I'm not tempted into seconds, etc.), I might give myself permission to ignore the points counter for the day.
We'll see how I do in the two weeks between now and then, I guess. 'Tis the season for diet backsliding, but I really don't want to lose too much ground.
Wednesday, November 11, 2009
Wednesday, November 4, 2009
Dodge!
This morning's weigh-in was 181.4, which is .6 lost this week, 91.6 total. Not an outstanding loss, but given the lack of control I was having with the Hallowe'en candy, I'm happy to have lost at all.
This week's challenge: my birthday. We're having dinner with my family on Sunday, and my actual birthday is Monday. I executed some preemptive damage-reduction and told my mom and husband that I'd make my own cake, and then I spent a day or so trolling the Weight Watchers recipe database for lower-point desserts. (I finally decided to make two of them: a two-layer meringue/mousse, and gingerbread cupcakes. I'm doing the cupcakes for the family party because my sister-in-law is allergic to both strawberries and chocolate, and also because I can slather the cupcakes with cream cheese frosting and no one will need to know that they're diet friendly.) Still, the possibility for excessive dessert consumption lingers, so that's what I'll need to try to avoid.
I'm also looking ahead to the challenge that is Thanksgiving. I've volunteered to bring pumpkin soup; I may also offer to bring lightened dressing and sweet potato dishes. And possibly dessert. (Honestly, I was going to volunteer to have Thanksgiving dinner at our house this year, but my mom is insisting. I don't think she'll object, however, if I take some of the cooking off her hands.)
I also dusted off the Wii Fit this morning (pretty much literally -- I haven't so much as looked at it for three months or more) and did a little yoga. That's got less to do with weight loss (yoga isn't exactly a calorie-burner) and more to do with my noticing twinges in my feet again lately, and yoga did more to help that than anything else, ever. So I want to try to do a little Wii Fit yoga in the mornings. The goal right now is to do about 15 minutes of yoga, at least 3 times a week. Ideally, I'd like to make it part of my weekday routine, but I don't want to get too ambitious too fast -- and I need to see how it fits into the morning schedule, anyway. If it works out well (and I can adjust to not hitting the snooze on my alarm three or four times in a row) I might start to tack on some of the strength training exercises, as well. But for now, just the yoga, just 15 minutes, to get my feet back in line.
This week's challenge: my birthday. We're having dinner with my family on Sunday, and my actual birthday is Monday. I executed some preemptive damage-reduction and told my mom and husband that I'd make my own cake, and then I spent a day or so trolling the Weight Watchers recipe database for lower-point desserts. (I finally decided to make two of them: a two-layer meringue/mousse, and gingerbread cupcakes. I'm doing the cupcakes for the family party because my sister-in-law is allergic to both strawberries and chocolate, and also because I can slather the cupcakes with cream cheese frosting and no one will need to know that they're diet friendly.) Still, the possibility for excessive dessert consumption lingers, so that's what I'll need to try to avoid.
I'm also looking ahead to the challenge that is Thanksgiving. I've volunteered to bring pumpkin soup; I may also offer to bring lightened dressing and sweet potato dishes. And possibly dessert. (Honestly, I was going to volunteer to have Thanksgiving dinner at our house this year, but my mom is insisting. I don't think she'll object, however, if I take some of the cooking off her hands.)
I also dusted off the Wii Fit this morning (pretty much literally -- I haven't so much as looked at it for three months or more) and did a little yoga. That's got less to do with weight loss (yoga isn't exactly a calorie-burner) and more to do with my noticing twinges in my feet again lately, and yoga did more to help that than anything else, ever. So I want to try to do a little Wii Fit yoga in the mornings. The goal right now is to do about 15 minutes of yoga, at least 3 times a week. Ideally, I'd like to make it part of my weekday routine, but I don't want to get too ambitious too fast -- and I need to see how it fits into the morning schedule, anyway. If it works out well (and I can adjust to not hitting the snooze on my alarm three or four times in a row) I might start to tack on some of the strength training exercises, as well. But for now, just the yoga, just 15 minutes, to get my feet back in line.
Monday, November 2, 2009
The Great Pumpkin
When we went to our favorite pumpkin patch this year to pick out our Hallowe'en pumpkins, we got a pumpkin for each member of the family. My husband and I each picked out nice-sized carving pumpkins with sturdy stems, and our daughter picked out her own smaller stemless pumpkin, and I grabbed a small "pie" pumpkin for our son, because he's not quite two yet and had no idea what was going on, and he's not going to be carving his own jack-o-lantern for several years yet.
At some point, it occurred to me that the thing to do, once Hallowe'en was over and we no longer required the pumpkins for decorative purposes, would be to make some pumpkin-based culinary treats. My daughter's been crazy about "helping" me cook lately, and I thought if I could find a diet-friendly recipe or two, I might give it a go. All in all, the experiment was a wild success, so I'm sharing it here, if for no other reason than it'll be handy when I want to repeat it later.
Step One: Preparing the Pumpkin.
Most recipes call for your pumpkin to be precooked and pureed. So Hallowe'en night, after we'd turned off our porch light, I brought in the pumpkin. I cut off the top (just like for a carving pumpkin, though with more difficulty, since pie pumpkins have thicker skin and meat), then cut it in half and scooped out the seeds and the goopy strands they hang in.
(As a side note, pie pumpkins have fatter seeds than carving pumpkins, and I was tempted to collect these and roast them... but pumpkin seeds have an insane amount of calories and/or fat, even if you toast them without using butter. And while I like pumpkin seeds, I don't like them enough to burn that many points on 'em!)
I got a baking sheet out, lightly sprayed it with some cooking spray, then put the two pumpkin halves flat-side down on the sheet, then covered them with foil. I put the sheet in a 375-degree (F) oven for about 90 minutes. (A little less than that, actually, when I started to smell something burning. The burning turned out to be some juice that had leaked out from under the foil and run to the far edge of the pan. The pumpkin itself was not burnt at all, though the skin had turned dark brown.) By then, it was bedtime, so I left the baking sheet on the stove to cool overnight.
In the morning, I went to turn one over and got a fun surprise: The inedible outer skin of the pumpkin lifted straight off the meat. So much for having to "scoop it out"! The instructions I was following recommended that I go through all sorts of weird steps to puree and strain the pumpkin, but I wasn't planning on making haute cuisine with it - a few lumps would be fine. So I just dumped the meat into a large plastic mixing bowl and took my stick blender to it. (I love my stick blender. Though I should mention that it probably wasn't necessary in this case. The pumpkin was so soft that it probably would've been perfectly pureed given about two minutes with a manual potato masher.)
Anyway, when it was all done, I spooned the puree into one-cup tupperware containers. I got three full cups out of the pumpkin (which was probably about 5 pounds?). Plus a couple of spoonfuls for my son, who was wandering around underfoot. He was pretty enthusiastic about the stuff, and I tried a bite, myself: All by itself, without any seasoning at all, the pumpkin puree tasted almost just like sweet potato. And it was weird to know that I hadn't seasoned it at all, because I would otherwise have sworn it had some cinnamon and cloves in it already. Very tasty stuff!
Recipe #1: Pumpkin Muffins
I got this recipe from the Weight Watchers site, and if you're a WW member, you can probably go straight to it at this link. But in case you're not a member, or they get rid of the recipe at some point in the future, here it is:
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 Tbsp baking powder
1 tsp table salt
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp ground cloves
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
2/3 cup unsweetened applesauce
1 cup pumpkin puree (can use canned, but fresh is better!)
2/3 cup sugar
1/2 cup egg substitute (e.g., Egg Beaters)
2/3 cup fat-free skim milk
But when that was done, I was still left with 2 cups of pumpkin puree, and I didn't really want to make that many muffins. Which led me to...
Recipe #2: Pumpkin Soup
I adapted this from another recipe online, so I'll just post what I've got:
2 cups cooked pumpkin, pureed
8 oz sweet (e.g., vidalia) onion, diced
1 tsp butter
4 cups chicken broth
1/4 tsp salt (may need a touch more if using low-sodium broth, but this is a good starting place)
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1/4 tsp ground cloves
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
1/4 tsp black pepper
2 Tbsp packed brown sugar
12 oz fat-free evaporated milk (1 can)
At some point, it occurred to me that the thing to do, once Hallowe'en was over and we no longer required the pumpkins for decorative purposes, would be to make some pumpkin-based culinary treats. My daughter's been crazy about "helping" me cook lately, and I thought if I could find a diet-friendly recipe or two, I might give it a go. All in all, the experiment was a wild success, so I'm sharing it here, if for no other reason than it'll be handy when I want to repeat it later.
Step One: Preparing the Pumpkin.
Most recipes call for your pumpkin to be precooked and pureed. So Hallowe'en night, after we'd turned off our porch light, I brought in the pumpkin. I cut off the top (just like for a carving pumpkin, though with more difficulty, since pie pumpkins have thicker skin and meat), then cut it in half and scooped out the seeds and the goopy strands they hang in.
(As a side note, pie pumpkins have fatter seeds than carving pumpkins, and I was tempted to collect these and roast them... but pumpkin seeds have an insane amount of calories and/or fat, even if you toast them without using butter. And while I like pumpkin seeds, I don't like them enough to burn that many points on 'em!)
I got a baking sheet out, lightly sprayed it with some cooking spray, then put the two pumpkin halves flat-side down on the sheet, then covered them with foil. I put the sheet in a 375-degree (F) oven for about 90 minutes. (A little less than that, actually, when I started to smell something burning. The burning turned out to be some juice that had leaked out from under the foil and run to the far edge of the pan. The pumpkin itself was not burnt at all, though the skin had turned dark brown.) By then, it was bedtime, so I left the baking sheet on the stove to cool overnight.
In the morning, I went to turn one over and got a fun surprise: The inedible outer skin of the pumpkin lifted straight off the meat. So much for having to "scoop it out"! The instructions I was following recommended that I go through all sorts of weird steps to puree and strain the pumpkin, but I wasn't planning on making haute cuisine with it - a few lumps would be fine. So I just dumped the meat into a large plastic mixing bowl and took my stick blender to it. (I love my stick blender. Though I should mention that it probably wasn't necessary in this case. The pumpkin was so soft that it probably would've been perfectly pureed given about two minutes with a manual potato masher.)
Anyway, when it was all done, I spooned the puree into one-cup tupperware containers. I got three full cups out of the pumpkin (which was probably about 5 pounds?). Plus a couple of spoonfuls for my son, who was wandering around underfoot. He was pretty enthusiastic about the stuff, and I tried a bite, myself: All by itself, without any seasoning at all, the pumpkin puree tasted almost just like sweet potato. And it was weird to know that I hadn't seasoned it at all, because I would otherwise have sworn it had some cinnamon and cloves in it already. Very tasty stuff!
Recipe #1: Pumpkin Muffins
I got this recipe from the Weight Watchers site, and if you're a WW member, you can probably go straight to it at this link. But in case you're not a member, or they get rid of the recipe at some point in the future, here it is:
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 Tbsp baking powder
1 tsp table salt
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp ground cloves
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
2/3 cup unsweetened applesauce
1 cup pumpkin puree (can use canned, but fresh is better!)
2/3 cup sugar
1/2 cup egg substitute (e.g., Egg Beaters)
2/3 cup fat-free skim milk
- Preheat oven to 400ºF. Coat a 12-hole muffin tin with cooking spray. (I recommend not using cupcake papers, because this is an oil-less recipe and they will stick to the muffins. If you really want to use them, spray the insides of the liners as well.)
- Combine flour, baking powder, salt , baking soda, and spices in a large bowl.
- Combine applesauce, pumpkin, sugar, egg substitute and milk in a medium bowl; mix thoroughly with a wooden spoon.
- Add applesauce mixture to flour mixture and mix until completely incorporated.
- Pour batter into muffin tins so each hole is about 2/3 full. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, or until a tester inserted in the center of a muffin comes out clean.
- Note #1: If you compare to the original WW recipe, you might note that I reduced the amount of nutmeg and added some ginger. I did that because I love ginger and I don't much care for nutmeg. Adjust spices at your own whim; just try to keep the total amount more or less the same.
- Note #2: I made both mini-muffins and regular-sized ones. I used 1 heaping Tbsp of batter for each mini-muffin (baking for only 12-13 minutes), and 3 heaping Tbsp of batter for each normal muffin, and that netted me 24 minis and 10 regular muffins -- which works out to 18 servings, if you assume a serving is 3 minis or 1 normal. The WW recipe says it makes 12 servings of 3 points each, but if you get 18 servings like I did, then they're 2 points each. Either way, they were really tasty!
But when that was done, I was still left with 2 cups of pumpkin puree, and I didn't really want to make that many muffins. Which led me to...
Recipe #2: Pumpkin Soup
I adapted this from another recipe online, so I'll just post what I've got:
2 cups cooked pumpkin, pureed
8 oz sweet (e.g., vidalia) onion, diced
1 tsp butter
4 cups chicken broth
1/4 tsp salt (may need a touch more if using low-sodium broth, but this is a good starting place)
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1/4 tsp ground cloves
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
1/4 tsp black pepper
2 Tbsp packed brown sugar
12 oz fat-free evaporated milk (1 can)
- Saute onion in butter (and some cooking spray, if needed) until it just begins to brown.
- Add 1-2c of broth, remove from heat, and puree until smooth. (I have mentioned that I love my stick blender, right? You can also do this in a regular blender or food processor, but then you have a larger doodad to clean.)
- Put it back over heat, and add remaining broth, pumpkin, spices, and sugar. Bring to a boil and simmer 10 min.
- Remove from heat and add milk.
- Note #1: The entire recipe is about 13 points; I got 4 meal-sized servings of about 2 cups each out of this, so that's 3 points per serving. I want to make this again for Thanksgiving dinner (if not before that), but that will probably be smaller 1-cup servings for half the points.
- Note #2: The recipe I adapted it from recommended serving it with cinnamon toast, which sounds really quite lovely.
- Note #3: The soup was wonderful, but a) a touch thin, and b) almost too sweet. For future batches, I might reduce the amount of brown sugar (just 1 Tbsp for that dark flavor, maybe) and add a tablespoon or two of either cornstarch or flour to thicken it up a bit.
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
Landmarkes and Mileposts
I'm at 182 this morning, which means I lost 1.2 this week and 91 total. I finally passed the 90-pound mark, yay!
I've been averaging about a pound a week for the last three months, so if that holds, I should hit my fourth 10% goal in about three weeks. I should figure out what my reward will be for that pretty soon, eh?
(It may turn out to be more than 3 weeks, though, as I've got a lot of speedbumps between now and then, including book club tonight, Hallowe'en this weekend, my birthday next weekend, and then a trip to visit family the weekend after that. We'll see how it goes, I guess.)
At any rate, I'm hoping to get there before the end of November. And from there, it's only another 5 pounds to my next exciting landmark: I'll finally be saying farewell to the "obese" tag and falling into the merely "overweight" category! Even allowing a few extra weeks for things to stall out a bit around Christmas, I should make that milestone by the end of January.
And if I stay at about 1 pound/week, then I could get to the "normal" category -- which coincides with my 6th and final 10% goal -- by the end of next summer. (My 5th 10% goal will happen somewhere in the spring, by this estimation.) And then I'll try to figure out where I want my final goal weight to be, and hopefully get there by around this time next year.
It seems like a long way off, but it's been a while since I've done any long-range goal-setting. My original goal (almost exactly a year ago) was to be under 200 by the end of September, and I beat that by a couple of months. I'd rather plan realistically than ambitiously.
But that's the end of the road that I can see. The end of it. A year ago, I wasn't sure I could even get below 200. Next year at this time, I hope to be figuring out the ins and outs of maintenance after having lost very close to half my starting weight. Two years, give or take, to lose 130 pounds, give or take. Sounds pretty reasonable to me.
Here's to the coming year.
I've been averaging about a pound a week for the last three months, so if that holds, I should hit my fourth 10% goal in about three weeks. I should figure out what my reward will be for that pretty soon, eh?
(It may turn out to be more than 3 weeks, though, as I've got a lot of speedbumps between now and then, including book club tonight, Hallowe'en this weekend, my birthday next weekend, and then a trip to visit family the weekend after that. We'll see how it goes, I guess.)
At any rate, I'm hoping to get there before the end of November. And from there, it's only another 5 pounds to my next exciting landmark: I'll finally be saying farewell to the "obese" tag and falling into the merely "overweight" category! Even allowing a few extra weeks for things to stall out a bit around Christmas, I should make that milestone by the end of January.
And if I stay at about 1 pound/week, then I could get to the "normal" category -- which coincides with my 6th and final 10% goal -- by the end of next summer. (My 5th 10% goal will happen somewhere in the spring, by this estimation.) And then I'll try to figure out where I want my final goal weight to be, and hopefully get there by around this time next year.
It seems like a long way off, but it's been a while since I've done any long-range goal-setting. My original goal (almost exactly a year ago) was to be under 200 by the end of September, and I beat that by a couple of months. I'd rather plan realistically than ambitiously.
But that's the end of the road that I can see. The end of it. A year ago, I wasn't sure I could even get below 200. Next year at this time, I hope to be figuring out the ins and outs of maintenance after having lost very close to half my starting weight. Two years, give or take, to lose 130 pounds, give or take. Sounds pretty reasonable to me.
Here's to the coming year.
Thursday, October 22, 2009
Chugging Along
Didn't post yesterday because I didn't have my little chart with me. But here it is: I'm down to 183.2 pounds, which is just 0.2 away from reaching the "90 pounds lost" milestone. That's 2.2 for the week -- unless you take into account the inexplicable, 1-day-only uptick I had last week on Wednesday. If you assume I was actually at 185 last week, then this was a 1.8 loss. Either way, pretty darned good, for lately.
I'm trying to remember to eat my activity points, either the day I earn them or the day after. I didn't quite manage it last week, mostly because work was doing this crazy thing where I was working absurd hours (no, really -- I went into the office at 10AM Sunday and didn't leave until 3:30 Monday morning) and it completely threw my eating out of joint. I'm actually really proud of myself for sticking to the diet through all that and not diving headfirst into the pizza and Chinese food that was being offered around.
So I really don't know whether it was the stress or the eating of APs or the screwed up sleep or what that helped me along. We'll see what happens, I suppose.
Did I mention that my brand new size 40-D bras are all on their tightest hooks, already? It's snug, but it's there. Which means it's about time for me to order some 38s. The "D" portion is still a bit in question -- I have to moosh things around to get everything to fit in the cups right, so I'm about half-pondering ordering 38-DDs instead of 38Ds. But I'm excited that I can see the end of the 40s.
It's worth noting that I was a 36C in high school, and a 38C in college -- and given the way boobs change for pregnancy and then don't change back, 38D may be the smallest chest size I can hope for. It's also worth noting that it's exclusively my chest that's keeping me from moving solidly into size Medium clothes -- when Ms don't fit, it's because they pull awkwardly across my boobs. Another couple of inches will probably get me into Ms for good, but if I'm giving up hope of a C cup, I might also have to give up hope of ever getting into a Small.
(Given that I started out at a 3X, though... I can live with M. Y'know?)
Danger Zone approaching. Hallowe'en looms! But aside from the caramel candy corn (which I'd happily eat by the pound), I'm not too terribly tempted, this year. If candy gets put in front of me, I'd certainly eat it (let's be honest) but I'm not eying the fun-sized chocolates and nerds and laffy taffy up on top of our fridge with unbridled longing, like I was last year. I think I'll be okay with 2-3 pieces on Hallowe'en night, and then making sure the rest all gets passed out to the neighborhood kids.
Matt and I talked about my birthday, and I suggested that I make my own cake/cupcakes/whatever -- that way I can both pick a lower-point option and have more confidence in my serving sizes. Of course, that means I need to start researching my options.
The weekend after my birthday, I'm taking a trip to Atlanta, so that will probably interfere with my diet a bit, but the family I'm staying with is extremely health-conscious, so it should only be a real problem on the travel days (airport food, whee) and if we're eating at the zoo or aquarium or other tourist-y places with standard junk food fare.
I'm trying to remember to eat my activity points, either the day I earn them or the day after. I didn't quite manage it last week, mostly because work was doing this crazy thing where I was working absurd hours (no, really -- I went into the office at 10AM Sunday and didn't leave until 3:30 Monday morning) and it completely threw my eating out of joint. I'm actually really proud of myself for sticking to the diet through all that and not diving headfirst into the pizza and Chinese food that was being offered around.
So I really don't know whether it was the stress or the eating of APs or the screwed up sleep or what that helped me along. We'll see what happens, I suppose.
Did I mention that my brand new size 40-D bras are all on their tightest hooks, already? It's snug, but it's there. Which means it's about time for me to order some 38s. The "D" portion is still a bit in question -- I have to moosh things around to get everything to fit in the cups right, so I'm about half-pondering ordering 38-DDs instead of 38Ds. But I'm excited that I can see the end of the 40s.
It's worth noting that I was a 36C in high school, and a 38C in college -- and given the way boobs change for pregnancy and then don't change back, 38D may be the smallest chest size I can hope for. It's also worth noting that it's exclusively my chest that's keeping me from moving solidly into size Medium clothes -- when Ms don't fit, it's because they pull awkwardly across my boobs. Another couple of inches will probably get me into Ms for good, but if I'm giving up hope of a C cup, I might also have to give up hope of ever getting into a Small.
(Given that I started out at a 3X, though... I can live with M. Y'know?)
Danger Zone approaching. Hallowe'en looms! But aside from the caramel candy corn (which I'd happily eat by the pound), I'm not too terribly tempted, this year. If candy gets put in front of me, I'd certainly eat it (let's be honest) but I'm not eying the fun-sized chocolates and nerds and laffy taffy up on top of our fridge with unbridled longing, like I was last year. I think I'll be okay with 2-3 pieces on Hallowe'en night, and then making sure the rest all gets passed out to the neighborhood kids.
Matt and I talked about my birthday, and I suggested that I make my own cake/cupcakes/whatever -- that way I can both pick a lower-point option and have more confidence in my serving sizes. Of course, that means I need to start researching my options.
The weekend after my birthday, I'm taking a trip to Atlanta, so that will probably interfere with my diet a bit, but the family I'm staying with is extremely health-conscious, so it should only be a real problem on the travel days (airport food, whee) and if we're eating at the zoo or aquarium or other tourist-y places with standard junk food fare.
Wednesday, October 14, 2009
Clawing My Way
Pff. I dropped to 185 Friday morning, spent the rest of the week there, and then -- naturally! -- popped up to 185.4 this morning, so officially I only lost 0.6 pounds last week, 87.6 total.
At least it's not another maintain. I missed a workout this week, and ate out twice on Saturday, and had chocolate cake last night (which might account for this morning's bump up, actually -- concentrated sugar makes me retain water for a bit).
The fact that Saturday's indulgences on top of Friday's lack of exercise didn't affect my weight does make me wonder if it's time for me to start playing around with, oddly, eating a little bit more. Specifically: I wonder if I ought to start eating my Activity Points, within, say, 24 hours of earning them. It's not like I rack up a lot of them; usually 3 points at a time. That's an apple and a half-cup of milk. Or a yogurt and a couple of crackers. Or two slices of low-fat cheese. (I've been craving dairy lately; can you tell? Might need to step up the calcium intake a bit.) Also, I should buy some more fruit and snack healthier when I'm trying to use up points to get to my minimum for the day. Jello sugar-free mousse cups are very tasty (2.5 points for 2 cups!) but possibly not quite in the spirit of the law, as it were.
Other signs of progress, though: I finally got around to ordering new bras. The 40D fits! I'm down to a D cup! (Though it's a bit of a squeeze, so I might have to go back up to a DD for certain styles.) The 40 part is definitely not a squeeze, though. Fresh out of the packaging, all three bras fit comfortably on the middle set of hooks, and two of them fit (snugly) on the tightest set. I might have waited a little too long to order those, hehe.
I tried on the too-tight Medium shirts with the new bras, and it no longer looks completely ridiculous, though I'm still not quite ready for them, yet. (Which means I still need to buy a few more long-sleeved shirts for the fall/winter. Even with my heater running, my office is freezing half the time.)
Any way, I'm not backsliding, but I really need to get a grip and start paying closer attention. The Danger Zone is only two weeks away: Hallowe'en, my birthday, Thanksgiving, Matt's birthday, and then the whole Christmas season... I need to set goals and plan strategies and stick to it!
At least it's not another maintain. I missed a workout this week, and ate out twice on Saturday, and had chocolate cake last night (which might account for this morning's bump up, actually -- concentrated sugar makes me retain water for a bit).
The fact that Saturday's indulgences on top of Friday's lack of exercise didn't affect my weight does make me wonder if it's time for me to start playing around with, oddly, eating a little bit more. Specifically: I wonder if I ought to start eating my Activity Points, within, say, 24 hours of earning them. It's not like I rack up a lot of them; usually 3 points at a time. That's an apple and a half-cup of milk. Or a yogurt and a couple of crackers. Or two slices of low-fat cheese. (I've been craving dairy lately; can you tell? Might need to step up the calcium intake a bit.) Also, I should buy some more fruit and snack healthier when I'm trying to use up points to get to my minimum for the day. Jello sugar-free mousse cups are very tasty (2.5 points for 2 cups!) but possibly not quite in the spirit of the law, as it were.
Other signs of progress, though: I finally got around to ordering new bras. The 40D fits! I'm down to a D cup! (Though it's a bit of a squeeze, so I might have to go back up to a DD for certain styles.) The 40 part is definitely not a squeeze, though. Fresh out of the packaging, all three bras fit comfortably on the middle set of hooks, and two of them fit (snugly) on the tightest set. I might have waited a little too long to order those, hehe.
I tried on the too-tight Medium shirts with the new bras, and it no longer looks completely ridiculous, though I'm still not quite ready for them, yet. (Which means I still need to buy a few more long-sleeved shirts for the fall/winter. Even with my heater running, my office is freezing half the time.)
Any way, I'm not backsliding, but I really need to get a grip and start paying closer attention. The Danger Zone is only two weeks away: Hallowe'en, my birthday, Thanksgiving, Matt's birthday, and then the whole Christmas season... I need to set goals and plan strategies and stick to it!
Wednesday, October 7, 2009
One Year Later
On October 8, 2008, I joined Weight Watchers Online. Mostly because I'd been goaded to by my therapist, and also because I was tired of feeling left out by all my friends who were doing WW.
I didn't take a "before" shot. I'm not sure why. Maybe because I expected it to be a depressingly long time before I'd be able to see a difference. But this picture was taken about two months before I joined, and I can pretty much guarantee I didn't lose any weight between this picture and when I joined.
Six months later, I was closing in on 50 pounds lost, and even I could see the difference.
At the nine month mark, I was down nearly 75 pounds.
And now, it's been a full 52 weeks. I've lost a year, I've lost the therapist (she wasn't that much help anyway), and most of all, I've lost more than 85 pounds.
I can't see much difference between the last two pictures. Part of that is the difference between summer and winter clothes, and part of it is that there's only about 15 pounds of difference there -- I've slowed down a lot, the last few months. But just for reference, the summer clothes are a size L, and the fall clothes are a size M. I can't wear every M I try on, yet, but I'm getting there.
As of this morning, I weigh 186 (no change this week). Which means that over the last year, I've lost 87 pounds.
My two kids together weigh less than that. That's nearly eleven full jugs of milk (11 gallons, less one pint, to be precise). And I used to carry it around with me, all the time.
Not losing is irritating when I've been feeling deprived all week anyway. This crawling pace I've suddenly dropped to can be frustrating, even disheartening. At least it's crawling in the right direction. But I'll be frustrated another day. Today, it's time to pause and celebrate just how far I've come.
I'm not done yet -- I'm still technically obese, according to the BMI charts, in fact. But I think I'm allowed, just this once, to pause and pat myself on the back. And to be impressed that I can reach my own back again. And cross my legs. And squat down to pick up my son. And a dozen other things that, one year ago, I couldn't even consider.
Happy diet-versary, me. Here's to another year of being a loser.
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