Losing Weight in 2016

[elaine amj]

@rockstache Look at it this way - u are maintaining your pre-holiday weight :)

@wintertell that's awesome that u are progressing so steadily! You are probably going through a "whoosh". Do u use any type of weigh trends? I use the trendweight app and it really helps to show the overall pattern.

@Starbright That's what I did last year - I got tired of dieting so I switched to maintenance thinking I could switch back to losing easily. That proved much much harder. If possible, do your best to keep the momentum going for another few pounds. That will give u a bit of a "safety" zone. That said, I would be thrilled to drop 10lbs and get back to the "reasonable " weight I was last year. Not skinny...but it worked.

I have been checking in only sporadically. Happy to report that weight loss has been going well for 2-3 weeks now, which is the first decent stretch since I started again in January! I am still being lazy about MFP but being rather strict about intake in general has helped and I am losing about a half pound a week, even with indulging a fair bit on weekends. Finally a wee bit less than my beginning of January weight (so annoyed that I gained instead of losing!).

And of course, I had to add a new setback. I messed up my shoulder swimming laps a couple of weeks back. Rotator cuff injury with a few weeks of therapy ahead. And man, it hurts! Plus I am babying it like crazy so it can heal ASAP. On the good side, I can still walk (although I just saw a podiatrist for plantar fasciitis and will get new orthotics in a few weeks) and I can still bike. No badminton AND no canoeing though (just when canoeing season is about to start).

I'm quite worried as I am competing in an adventure race (biking, hiking, canoeing) in late June. My physiotherapist said I should be better by mid May.

Every cloud has a silver lining though, right? My teens have been very concerned about my injury. My daughter helps me dress and even braided my hair this morning! (I had to grit my teeth through the pain and redo it lol) and my son mopped the whole house tonight. All in all, both have been super helpful so I can avoid using my shoulder as much as possible.


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[Izybat]

All week I was expecting not to lose weight this week, since every time I stepped on the scale (which I do daily) It showed me staying the same. Randomly however, when I actually went to weigh in for real on Saturday, I lost a pound. I'll take it. 25.4 lbs total lost!

[begood]

All week I was expecting not to lose weight this week, since every time I stepped on the scale (which I do daily) It showed me staying the same. Randomly however, when I actually went to weigh in for real on Saturday, I lost a pound. I'll take it. 25.4 lbs total lost!

Yay, Izybat!

I weigh in once a month, at the nutritionist's office. I think of it like my investments: checking every day sets me on a mood roller coaster, so instead I just stick to the plan and check in monthly instead. ;)

[Izybat]

I think I'm one of the rare people whose weight doesn't tend to fluctuate all that much. Maybe a pound or two, but usually far less than that. Weighing in every day doesn't usually make me depressed, it just usually keeps me accountable. This why, if my weight is up, I can assess why I think that is and make adjustments if necessary.

[wintertell]

I both my Fitbit and MyFitnessPal to look at the trends. I try to have the Avg Weight for the Week at least be less than the previous week! I also have a graph in my Google drive. Anyway, this was  a much larger whoosh than normal - I think because I was eating really well consistently.

[elaine amj]

@izybat That's awesome!!! Congrats!!!

@wintertell Trendweight syncs with fitbit (and is the only reason I have a fitbit account) so it could be a much easier way for you to track trends. Even better, it generates a nice graph for u :)


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[rpr]

Date          Weight
1/1/2017    130
2/28/2017  133.6
3/10/2017  132.2
3/16/2017  131.0
4/10/2017  135.6

Once again, travel gets to me. Been traveling for work these last three weeks. Zero formal exercise and lots of eating out. Heavy breakfasts, heavy lunches and even heavier dinners. Have walked a fair bit and that probably helped somewhat. Have to get back on the saddle again.

[elaine amj]

@rpr Traveling for work - especially for such a long period of time is definitely hard! I have such a hard time resisting the lure of free food. I think I NEED to learn the concept of "enough". One small slice of decadent cheesecake is indulgent, delicious, and enough. I don't need 3 to feel satisfied (so not there yet!).

I've been doing ok. I do need to reframe my attitude towards food though. Last year, I went with the mindset that as long as about 80% of my intake was nutritious, I was good with about 20% junk. Right now when I eat anything I classify as "junk", I'm triggered to raid every piece of "junk food" in sight, both at my office and at home. That's just not a healthy mindset so I'm going to work on that.

I am still not logging seriously on MFP, but have been somewhat ok about eating approximately 1200 calories a day. Not counting exercise (50 min roundtrip bike commute 3-5 days a week and 30-60 min walks 2-3 times a week) has helped with some of the extra eating on the weekends and the fudge factor with my eyeball estimates. If I stick with this, I know I will continue losing. Logging on MFP would help me be a lot more precise though so I'm trying to get the motivation to do it again.

I'm also spending more time on the MFP boards as I find that keeps me more "in the zone".

[rpr]

@ elaine amj -- Thanks. It is definitely hard. I see what you mean by the free food aspect. The room rate had breakfast included so I gorged on it. One butter croissant was not enough, I had a second croissant but this one was chocolate filled ;) Plus, lunch was covered as well. It is not surprising that I gained about 4 lbs in 3+ weeks. I must try harder to be more conscious about what I eat especially when traveling.

Junk food poses a challenge as well. At home it is easier as I avoid buying them completely. But at work it is a different matter as often there is stuff that is definitely not good.

Regarding, MFP, I find the logging part reasonably useful. This is the one definite way I know to be focused on what and how much I eat.

[elaine amj]

Well, last night, in my quest to add junk food to my life, I ate a handful of Munchies snack mix. My DH was horrified and I told him why I was doing it. He's not a fan, but made no further comment. Afterwards, I was still full after dinner and contemplated taking out my frozen mangoes (my usual after dinner snack). Amazingly, I didn't feel any strong cravings for it (OR for anything else!) and I ended up skipping any further after-dinner snacks.

This morning, we had an Easter Egg Hunt at work. My boss is a hoot and sets up an Hunt for us in the office. He stays late the night before and covers the office with chocolate and treats, some scattered all over the floor and plenty scattered in various nooks and crannies - including an elusive golden bunny (the finder wins a $50 gift card!!). Anyway, I now have piles of chocolate to add to my office. I decided I would add a small chocolate bunny and a rice krispie square to my breakfast. BUT, I will eat my breakfast first (a banana and 1 homemade energy bite). I'm going to go over my calories a bit today but I spent half an hour bending and standing (VERY good workout - got me sweating!) to collect all this chocolate so I must have burned at least 1 bunny's worth of calories!

I'm really hoping this strategy will work - it's nice not to feel guilty about treats.

[wintertell]

Well, last night, in my quest to add junk food to my life, I ate a handful of Munchies snack mix. My DH was horrified and I told him why I was doing it. He's not a fan, but made no further comment. Afterwards, I was still full after dinner and contemplated taking out my frozen mangoes (my usual after dinner snack). Amazingly, I didn't feel any strong cravings for it (OR for anything else!) and I ended up skipping any further after-dinner snacks.

I'm really hoping this strategy will work - it's nice not to feel guilty about treats.

Sounds like the concept of "buffer foods" might work for you. Or maybe this is your buffer food?

A friend of mine purposefully builds in treats throughout the day, like Werther's Hard Candy, so that it replaces other junk food that would be a poorer choice. Then, it never feels like you are deprived and you can stay on plan. For me, it was Greek yogurt with the sweet toppings for a couple of months. For others, it is that Halo Top ice cream that has all of the protein in it so you stay full longer. Or individually wrapped chocolate?

The suggestions below are really healthy ones, but I have seen people do it with treats, in the example above. They normally reserve some calories just for this so they stay on plan long term.

https://www.t-nation.com/diet-fat-loss/tip-add-a-buffer-food-to-your-diet

http://vitals.lifehacker.com/buffer-foods-help-curb-cravings-and-keep-your-diet-on-1788415798?utm_content=buffer44d0c&utm_medium=social&utm_source=facebook.com&utm_campaign=buffer

[begood]

Well, last night, in my quest to add junk food to my life, I ate a handful of Munchies snack mix. My DH was horrified and I told him why I was doing it. He's not a fan, but made no further comment. Afterwards, I was still full after dinner and contemplated taking out my frozen mangoes (my usual after dinner snack). Amazingly, I didn't feel any strong cravings for it (OR for anything else!) and I ended up skipping any further after-dinner snacks.

I'm really hoping this strategy will work - it's nice not to feel guilty about treats.

Sounds like the concept of "buffer foods" might work for you. Or maybe this is your buffer food?

A friend of mine purposefully builds in treats throughout the day, like Werther's Hard Candy, so that it replaces other junk food that would be a poorer choice. Then, it never feels like you are deprived and you can stay on plan. For me, it was Greek yogurt with the sweet toppings for a couple of months. For others, it is that Halo Top ice cream that has all of the protein in it so you stay full longer. Or individually wrapped chocolate?

The suggestions below are really healthy ones, but I have seen people do it with treats, in the example above. They normally reserve some calories just for this so they stay on plan long term.

https://www.t-nation.com/diet-fat-loss/tip-add-a-buffer-food-to-your-diet

http://vitals.lifehacker.com/buffer-foods-help-curb-cravings-and-keep-your-diet-on-1788415798?utm_content=buffer44d0c&utm_medium=social&utm_source=facebook.com&utm_campaign=buffer

Thanks for those links, wintertell. I hadn't heard of the "buffer" concept before, but it makes sense and it's kind of what I've been doing without realizing it had a name. I have turned away from my biggest trigger foods - donuts and cake - with more ease than I expected because I have not limited dark chocolate (60% cocoa or more). But I'm trying to cut out even more sugar, and that's one place to do it, so this week, I replaced my Dove dark easter eggs (where eating one makes me want another, and another... and some days I get most of my fat from chocolate...) with Ghirardelli 100% cocoa unsweetened baking chocolate.

One 80 calorie section lasts me a whole afternoon because a wee bit goes a very long way. It has the texture and taste of chocolate but it's bitter. It has 0 grams of sugar, so I'm giving it a try this week. *shrug* I can always go back to Dove dark, but for now it's working.

[elaine amj]

One 80 calorie section lasts me a whole afternoon because a wee bit goes a very long way. It has the texture and taste of chocolate but it's bitter. It has 0 grams of sugar, so I'm giving it a try this week. *shrug* I can always go back to Dove dark, but for now it's working.

That's awesome!

I've been doing substitutions - but sometime nothing but the junkiest junk food will do. And for some reason, trying to switch EVERYTHING to its nutritious counterpart was just triggering me to eat all.the.things. So we'll see how this 80% nutrition, 20% junk works for me.

I'm proud to report that after eating the chocolate I set aside (and logged) to eat this morning...I had not the least temptation to raid the giant basket of chocolates in my office! Normally, one piece of chocolate means 10 pieces. So far, so good. One day, I'd like to get the the point where a juicy, delicious orange gives the same satisfaction as the most forbidden of junky treats!

[QueenV]

I haven't logged in for awhile because I was out of town for a bit.

Weigh-in:

2/20: 159.5
2/26: 158.5
3/4:   155
3/7:   154.5
3/12: 153.5
3/19: 153.5
3/26: 154
3/27: 152.5
3/31: 150.5
4/3:   154.5
4/10: 152

I weighed myself right before and right after my trip and was definitely up after several days of mostly eating out.  Not too surprising.  I'm working on getting back down again!

rpr, like you I have a really hard time eating healthy while traveling.  It seems like everything at a restaurant has twice as many calories as the same item if I made it at home!  I'm not sure why that is, are restaurants frying everything in butter? 

I think this month is going to be a challenge as we have a lot of events coming up - Easter this weekend, a fancy gala thing for my husband's work the following weekend, and an overnight trip for my birthday the weekend after that.  I'm working on keeping my calories down during the week, but we've done some eating out in the last two weeks so it's time for me to be more disciplined again!  I'm finding that tracking with MFP really helps me avoid all the empty calories though!

[elaine amj]

I think this month is going to be a challenge as we have a lot of events coming up - Easter this weekend, a fancy gala thing for my husband's work the following weekend, and an overnight trip for my birthday the weekend after that.  I'm working on keeping my calories down during the week, but we've done some eating out in the last two weeks so it's time for me to be more disciplined again!  I'm finding that tracking with MFP really helps me avoid all the empty calories though!

I think it helps to remember that these social things are a part of your life....and will be popping up regularly for the rest of your life. Coming up with a strategy that works for the rest of your life will help you live it and maintain.

I maintained easily for months last year. But then in November started "Trying to Diet". I gained 10 pounds in 2 months. I am starting to feel I sabotaged myself with all that diet thinking and restriction which lead to bingeing.

You CAN do this!!!

[rpr]

@ QueenV -- The important thing is the long term trend which is good in your case. 

Indeed, in my situation it was literally true that the restaurants were either frying in butter and/or olive oil with huge dollops of cheese thrown in for good measure. Plus there was plenty of drinking as well, wine mostly.

Also I agree with elaine amj, that in the short term, there are things that will come up and we appear to be sabotaging ourselves. But have to get back on that horse again.

[QueenV]

elaine amj and rpr, those are good points. I do keep thinking about that, that I have to find a way to make this sustainable. There will always be events and gatherings and special occasions and I wouldn't want to stop doing them!  I'm fine restricting treats for a small amount of time but I don't want to give them up for the rest of my life, you know? Plus my ultimate goal is to create new habits around food. I don't want to "diet" I want to develop a new way of eating. I think I'm on my way, I seem to have "reset" how many calories I need to feel full. And I've discovered that increasing fat and protein helps me feel full longer so I'm not feeling the need to snack as much.

Thanks for the encouragement!

[StarBright]

Friday Weigh-In:

Start Date: Feb 24: 155.4 lbs
March 3:    154 lbs
March 10: 151.6
March 17: 150.6
March 24: 150.2
April 3: 149.4
April 7: 148.2
April 14: 147.8

As y'all suggested would happen, using MFP my loss is definitely starting to trend towards less than a pound a week and that feels good and sustainable. The nice weather for the last week has also been infinitely helpful; we spent several hours in our community garden plot last weekend, went hiking, and I've taken several walks with the sunrise this week.

Ending my second winter in the mid-west (since childhood) I think I can definitely say that I have mild seasonal mood issues. I actually feel like an entirely different person this week in regards to energy, anxiety and general mood. so yay- Hello Spring!

Queen V- i used to travel a lot for work and my plan was/is always "Sushi, Salad, and Soup." Due to sodium and what not it is not perfect, but it certainly keeps crazy eating in check. It is also sort of a treat because restaurant salads are so much more creative than what i make myself at home. Social events are definitely harder, especially things with finger foods!

The whole buffer food idea is really interesting.

[Izybat]

I had a great weigh in today! I lost another 2.2 lbs for a total of 27.6. I'm very happy with my progress.

[Runrooster]

Week1: -3
Week2: -5
Week3: -6
Week4: -7
Week5: -9
Week6: -11

week7:-12
week8:-13

slowing down due to new job, but should settle down soon.

[PMG]

This article was just what I needed today.  Thought others might be encouraged as well.  It's about attitudes, emotions and food.

https://www.popsugar.com/fitness/How-Stop-Food-Shaming-43178266

[elaine amj]

@starbright That's so great that MFP is helping!!! Easy and sustainable is perfect!

I ate quite a bit over the weekend but balanced it with lots of walking and lighter meals and my weight held steady.

I'm pretty excited - I checked my trendweight, and I'm trending at about 2.6 lb loss over the past month! It is SO good to finally see my weight trending DOWNward. It's very slow (only about a half pound a week) because I have not been logging strictly. I'm hoping to start logging more strictly soon. For now, this feels pretty good and I'm going to work with it. That said, I will need to pick up the pace a bit because I REALLY want to hit my goal before my big vacation in August.

I logged today (but didn't weigh my food) so that's a start. In the spirit of my goal to include empty calories into my plans, I had two shortbread cookies after lunch, which were delicious. Then I went for a walk. Unfortunately, now I am craving something again. Haven't quite decided what to do - just popped a mint. Since I've already had my empty calorie treat of the day, I think I will resist this craving and stick to my plans.

I am very undecided on whether to include my exercise calories. I think I'll include my lunch walk but not my commute-by-bike calories. When I get to the point where I am logging strictly, I'll log all my exercise calories too. For now, it gives me some leeway since I am mostly guesstimating my calorie intake.

[QueenV]

Starbright, Izybat, Runrooster, and elaine amj, sounds like you are all making great progress! 

Weigh-in:

2/20: 159.5
2/26: 158.5
3/4:   155
3/7:   154.5
3/12: 153.5
3/19: 153.5
3/26: 154
3/27: 152.5
3/31: 150.5
4/3:   154.5
4/10: 152
4/15: 151.5

Things are moving in the right direction so overall I'm happy with my progress.  And I finally got my treadmill moved into my house!  I don't love walking on it compared to walking outside - 10 min on the treadmill kind of feels like torture, 10 min or even more outside feels like no big deal.  BUT there are enough days where I just can't get outside because the weather's nasty or I just got too busy, so this is a nice backup plan.  Spring is finally here (mostly) and that makes it easier to just get outside.  I went on a long walk with my son yesterday and it's been SOOO long since we were able to do that because the weather's been so bad this winter.  He loves being outside, so getting some extra exercise in should get easier as the weather gets nicer.

[elaine amj]

My weight dropped another wee bit this morning. AND for the first time in I-don't-know-how-long, my weight is finally trending under 140 lbs!! I have to say, I had a bit of a battle last night as I really wanted a snack after dinner. But kept seeing that red number in MFP (I was over by a few cals) and managed to resist. I even went to bed early! I was planning to sleep at 11pm...and eventually went to sleep at 11:30pm. Which is still awesome since I typically hang out on various forums until 12:30-1:30am...which has not been good for my body. I'm going to keep up with aiming to go to sleep about 11pm, which is a much more reasonable time. Plus, weight loss IS easier on better sleep :)

I'm hungry again and it's about 30 mins until lunchtime. Fighting the snack temptation now so came on here to post (it helps boost my willpower!). After lunch, I'm going to have 2 delicious shortbread cookies as my junk food treat of the day!

I also have another victory to report. The weather is looking dicey today and I have a physio appointment right when it is forecast to rain. DH tried to convince me to drive to work. But I was reluctant to "waste" waking up early. So I packed a change of clothes and rode my bike to work. REALLY hoping it doesn't rain when I go for my physio - it's a 10 min bike ride. I have visions of coming back to the office soaked completely through lol! Tonight, my bff and I have plans to go for a long walk. Again, really hoping the rain doesn't mess things up!

I actually kind of shocked myself - we talked about rain being an issue and I told her if necessary, we'll go mall walking. If we want to form habits, consistency is going to be key.  No, it doesn't make much of a difference to skip a day here or there. But it feels GREAT to persevere through the challenges

[elaine amj]

Starbright, Izybat, Runrooster, and elaine amj, sounds like you are all making great progress! 

Weigh-in:

2/20: 159.5
2/26: 158.5
3/4:   155
3/7:   154.5
3/12: 153.5
3/19: 153.5
3/26: 154
3/27: 152.5
3/31: 150.5
4/3:   154.5
4/10: 152
4/15: 151.5

Things are moving in the right direction so overall I'm happy with my progress.  And I finally got my treadmill moved into my house!  I don't love walking on it compared to walking outside - 10 min on the treadmill kind of feels like torture, 10 min or even more outside feels like no big deal.  BUT there are enough days where I just can't get outside because the weather's nasty or I just got too busy, so this is a nice backup plan.  Spring is finally here (mostly) and that makes it easier to just get outside.  I went on a long walk with my son yesterday and it's been SOOO long since we were able to do that because the weather's been so bad this winter.  He loves being outside, so getting some extra exercise in should get easier as the weather gets nicer.

@QueenV Your progress has been amazing! AND what's better...very consistent for 2 straight months! Keep enjoying the victories - your hard work is definitely paying off!

[wintertell]

Weight Log
12/6/16  ~265
1/7/17      256.4   
2/3/17      251.6
3/10/17    242.2
4/7/17      235.8
4/19/17    232.8 (-3)
Total Loss: 32.2 lbs
Total Percent: 12.15%

Food
I've been eating a diet focused on decreasing insulin resistance/increasing insulin sensitivity. It has really been helping.

This involves:  5-6 meals a day. Limiting processed carbs. Building healthy fats. Limiting hydrogenated or trans fats. Making sure every meal has protein, fat and carbs.

Exercise
I also have been doing exercise that is focused on the same thing. This involves: starting resistance training and flirting with HIIT. Flirting with HIIT so far involves 1 10 min session on the stationary bike with an interval app on my phone.

I also am doing this routine for resistance training - I did 1 set the first time and 2 the second time. Working on it!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qvhHhDNjtxM&list=PLvoXP_hU3AqUDbqZmkHvnDH-BouToFllq&index=2

I also have done some yoga -
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oBu-pQG6sTY&index=2&list=PLui6Eyny-UzwxbWCWDbTzEwsZnnROBTIL
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GnHTeHAZQhM

I also have been doing cool downs/warm ups/stretching off of YouTube -
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XewzQ9MRDh8
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y3rJ5AzoQzk
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hsGgI0ThLG8&t=101s

[StarBright]

Friday Weigh-In:

Start Date: Feb 24: 155.4 lbs
March 3:    154 lbs
March 10: 151.6
March 17: 150.6
March 24: 150.2
April 3: 149.4
April 7: 148.2
April 14: 147.8
April 21: 147.2

@wintertell - I msut have missed when you passed the 10% mark - well done!!!! I feel like I've read the first 10% is the most important health-wise.

Go @QueenV!

@elaine amj - I think the "red number" in the MFP food diary is the no. 1 thing that is helping me right now. I'm actually still craving my stress snacks but I dial them into MFP and I see how they are the single thing that throws off my entire day and then I choose something that comes in at a lower calorie point. This happens almost every single day.

@pmg - thanks for sharing that article - I needed it too!

[StarBright]

Friday Weigh-In:

Start Date: Feb 24: 155.4 lbs
March 3:    154 lbs
March 10: 151.6
March 17: 150.6
March 24: 150.2
April 3: 149.4
April 7: 148.2
April 14: 147.8
April 21: 147.2
April 28: 147.2

Also - I measured myself this week (since I'm at the two month mark) - Have lost two inches from hips and waist and a half inch from my neck (I didn't even know the neck was something to measure - but since MFP asked for the data I did it :)).

I actually was down a bit more Tuesday- Thursday but I ate the most delicious sandwich yesterday and know that I'm up a half pound today due to retaining water from the sodium. Whatever! It was worth it because I had a sandwich and a beer and it was SO GOOD!

Hope everyone had a nice week.

[rpr]

Here's my update:

Date          Weight
1/1/2017    130
2/28/2017  133.6
3/10/2017  132.2
3/16/2017  131.0
4/10/2017  135.6
4/28/2017  132.8

At least trending in the right direction ;) Been watching what I eat, no logging. Also resumed daily exercise ritual of running/walking 2+ miles in the morning, first thing after drinking my cup of tea. My interim goal is to at least get it consistently below my weight at the beginning of this year. I know I can do it.

It's been a couple weeks and its good to see these updates from everyone.

Starbright -- I agree that measurements are a better indicator. While I have gained weight since my lowest weight from a few months ago, my clothes still seem to fit almost the same as back then.

Wintertell -- great job hitting the 10%+ drop in weight. That is a good milestone.

elaine amj -- I'm slowly making a switch to no screen devices in the evening about an hour before scheduled bedtime. That includes internet-TV and even my beloved kindle. Switching to reading paper books. That seems to put me to sleep better.

QueenV -- a pound a week is darn good progress!

PMG -- Thanks for the link to that interesting article. It's all about our attitude to these things.

[Izybat]

Lost 0.6 lbs this week, which I'll happily take as when I jumped on my scale this morning (as opposed to the Weight Watchers one), it looked like I was going to stay the same.  Down 30.8 overall, and happy about it!

[Suzanne]

While searching online I have found that dieters lose weight more quickly at the beginning of their diets.  Even when they stick to their diets, the rate of weight loss slows down over time. So I want you to check for your weight loss program so that you lose weight which is healthy.

[elaine amj]

@Izybat That's some fabulous progress! Congrats on passing 30 lbs!!

@rpr Haven't been ablt to wean myself off my phone at night - but been mostly consistently sleeping by 11pm -12am for a whole week or more now and that is a huge step forward for me (other than last night when it was closer to 1:15am).

Was thrilled when I stepped on the scale this morning! 137 lbs - finally it seems like I am making some progress. All of last week was rough with the scale stuck at 139/140 despite my sticking to the program. I was getting quite disgruntled by the weekend (even when I knew better). Then finally this morning, I got my whoosh!

Of course, this is accompanied by feeling like I am starving. I had my usual breakfast and I am still so hungry. So had a buttery shortbread cookie. So far I have managed to stop myself there and WILL stick with my plans for the rest of the day. On the good side, I have managed to really ingrain my biking commute habit. This morning, I woke up to rain in the forecast. I packed a change of clothes and hopped on my bike anyway (without even much of an internal debate!). Thankfully, the rain held off. Hopefully it will stay away when I bike to my physio appointment (only 10 mins bike ride) at 1:30 today.

Overall, weight loss is slower because I am not logging. Despite trying for months, have not been able to work up the motivation to log. I really do need to though if I want to hit my goal weight by August. I am losing - but only 0.3 - 0.5 lbs a week with my current method. It's so silly - I know logging works. I know it's not that hard. I know all the strategies to make it easier. And yet, I still don't do it. Ugh.

[SquashingDebt]

Anyone have a recommendation for a good scale? 

What I don't like about my current one:  I have to step on it to zero it each time I use it, and it seems to give me fairly inaccurate readings.  I can step on it three times in a minute and get weights that are more than a pound different from each other.  It also sometimes will give me exactly the same reading for days in a row.  I can believe that I haven't lost much weight, but it seems unlikely that I'm exactly the same for that many days straight.

I learned while doing some quick Amazon browsing that some scales, if you're within .6 lb of your last reading, will just display that previous reading.  I'm sure you all can understand why that would be frustrating when doing daily weight tracking (and is quite possibly part of the problem with my current scale).

Doesn't need to look fancy or do any fancy things like connect to a Fitbit.

Thanks!

[Crystal1588]

SO! I know I'm REALLY late to this party (over a year!!) ha. But, I really like the community on this thread better than on the one for 2017, so if you all don't mind I would love to join you. You guys are all making fabulous progress, it's seriously inspiring!

I am 29, mama to 3 kiddos (5,3 and 6 months) and my weight has slowly been creeping up since I got married in 2010.  About 2 weeks ago, I started a whole food diet. No processed foods, no added sugar (except trace amounts) and no bread. Before I started my diet was pretty bad. I have a serious sweet tooth and I love my bread.  I'm being pretty strict with this diet, but to be honest after the first 3 days my cravings have seriously subsided, so hopefully it can stick.

 My goal weight is 140 lbs with a stretch goal of 135, starting 2 weeks ago (Monday after Easter), I was at 165. I am 5'6''

Weigh ins:
4/17: 165 lbs
4/24: 158 lbs
5/1: 156 lbs

I plan on weighing in weekly and posting my progress!

[elaine amj]

@SquashingDebt Unfortunately, I don't know. My guess is pretty much anything you buy should work just fine. I got mine from a yard sale like a good Mustachian. I was a bit frustrated with mine too - then one day, I put my dumbbells on it. Turns out my scale is scarily accurate - I'm just not so good at standing still on it! Mine varies by about a half pound every time I stand on it. So I weigh myself about 3-5 times in a row until I get two matching numbers.

@rockstache That is SO awesome!! And you've maintained this for the past few months too. You have done phenomenally well over the past year. Very inspiring.

@Crystal1588 WELCOME! I love this group and I really credit it for helping me a ton last year. It makes a big difference to have a place to come to and be honest. Even when you are dying to have another cookie. Sometimes, just typing it all out here gives me the strength to say no.

As for me, I was thrilled to see another half pound drop this morning. After an entire week of frustration with the scale not budging (or going up!) its nice to see confirmation that my whoosh finally happened. Now it's a matter of sticking to the program. Yesterday, after all my excitement, I craved sweets like no tomorrow and ate some of the chocolate and the last of my shortbread cookies from Easter. Thankfully, I had a very active day and was able to restrain my eating otherwise. When I did some rough math of my calories, I was only about a 100 cals or so over my 1200 cals a day. So no big deal, especially with all the activity I did.

[10dollarsatatime]

It's been a while since I posted last, but wanted to update!  I started this year at 177.  I started the whole30 in an attempt to reign in fibro symptoms (which worked once I went to the AIP).  I'm now weighing in at around 164!  I'm doing reintro now, but the packing all the food habit will carry on, which means I'll continue to eat healthy meals at work.  I've also started running again (had to back off due to a hip injury last fall), and have a half marathon in about 6 weeks. 

[elaine amj]

@10dollars That is amazing!!! Congratulations! (and thanks for updating the rest of us). Sticking with the "pack food to work" habit is awesome for the wallet AND the waistline so kudos on a double whammy :)

[StarBright]

I learned while doing some quick Amazon browsing that some scales, if you're within .6 lb of your last reading, will just display that previous reading. 

Whoaa- I didn't know that but it explains so much! I'll weigh the same for days upon days and all of the sudden lose or gain a pound. Thanks for sharing this.

@elaine amj - so glad you had a good week. You are such an awesome support for everyone in this group that I feel sad when you aren't happy with your weigh ins!

@10dollarsatatime - congrats! and thanks for the update.

@Crystal1588 - welcome! Our stats our very similar, I'm 5' 5.5" (that is an important half inch for BMI :)) and also have a stretch goal of 135. I have little ones the same age too (well, a 3 and a 5 - I can't fathom anymore children, so good for you!).

@Rockstache - you continue to inspire. I love that you are still checking in here for maintenance.

@izybat and @rpr - well done y'all!


I'm basically just checking in midweek because I am STARVING and I'm trying to stop myself from eating anything else or I won't have any calories left for dinner. I'm in a plateau and I'm hungry and typing keeps me from eating :)

Hope everyone is having a good week!

[Runrooster]

Week1: -3
Week2: -5
Week3: -6
Week4: -7
Week5: -9
Week6: -11
Week7:-12
week8:-13

week9:-14
week10: -15

slow but sure.

[rpr]

I learned while doing some quick Amazon browsing that some scales, if you're within .6 lb of your last reading, will just display that previous reading. 

Whoaa- I didn't know that but it explains so much! I'll weigh the same for days upon days and all of the sudden lose or gain a pound. Thanks for sharing this.

This information was new to me as well! So I'm trying to trick the scale with alternating by lifting something else (greater than 1 lb) when I step on it. However, the scale I have seems to register this difference quite well. The scale I'm using is the cheap generic digital scale from CVS.

http://www.cvs.com/shop/home-health-care/monitors/scales/cvs-digital-body-scale-prodid-864739?skuId=864739

It is quite inexpensive. I bought it locally but it is listed at $10.99 online. Happy with it so far.

I'm basically just checking in midweek because I am STARVING and I'm trying to stop myself from eating anything else or I won't have any calories left for dinner. I'm in a plateau and I'm hungry and typing keeps me from eating :)

Hope everyone is having a good week!

These plateaus are the hardest. Our body has gotten used to this equilibrium. Need to do something to shake it out of it.

[elaine amj]

I'm basically just checking in midweek because I am STARVING and I'm trying to stop myself from eating anything else or I won't have any calories left for dinner. I'm in a plateau and I'm hungry and typing keeps me from eating :)

Ugh - those are the worst! That was me last week. I don't know how but I managed to mostly stick with the plan. I just kept screaming in my head "STICK WITH THE PLAN!!" and finally this week it has paid off. Yet another 0.5 lb drop this morning :) It's nice to be excited to look at the scale again.

And yet - I am still adjusting to my current eating plan and have been battling hunger. I've been eating enough and been eating enough of the right kind of meals so I have no real reason to be hungry. I'm chalking it up to still getting used to eating less - which I know from experience takes about 2-3 weeks. I have found that drinking a cup of herbal tea helps. Or just plain drinking water. A lot of times, I'm thirsty and my body is interpreting it as hunger.

The sleep has been going reasonably well too. It's great that I've been falling asleep before midnight the vast majority of the time now. I know my body is thanking me for this. An 11pm bedtime would be better though since I wake up around 7ish. I have managed 11pm a few times so I count that as a success.

It's just a bit tough because late night is "me" time. My DH & kids go to bed about 10pm and anytime after this is my time to chill in complete peace and surf on my favorite forums. I do get time to do that earlier in the evenings, but rarely in complete peace as my family likes to follow me around. I had always thought that teenagers keep to themselves but my teens tend to gravitate to whatever room of the house I'm in. And so does my DH. It's a nice compliment - but does drive me batty sometimes when I just want to be completely by myself. Every once in a while, I ban them all from my room, shut the door, switch off the lights, and claim some "me time".

[wintertell]

Weight Log
12/6/16  ~265
1/7/17      256.4   
2/3/17      251.6
3/10/17    242.2
4/7/17      235.8
4/19/17    232.8
5/4/17      230.0 (2.8)
Total Loss: 35 lbs
Total Percent: 13.2%

Another drop today! I expect it to go up a bit since it was bigger drop, but hopefully down towards the 220s soon!

[begood]

Weight Log
12/6/16  ~265
1/7/17      256.4   
2/3/17      251.6
3/10/17    242.2
4/7/17      235.8
4/19/17    232.8
5/4/17      230.0 (2.8)
Total Loss: 35 lbs
Total Percent: 13.2%

Another drop today! I expect it to go up a bit since it was bigger drop, but hopefully down towards the 220s soon!

Wow, wintertell, that's great! :)

[wintertell]

Thanks begood! As well as to the folks on here who give great encouragement further up in the previous threads : )

[elaine amj]

Yay @wintertell!!!!

[rpr]

wintertell -- That is awesome.

[rpr]

It's just a bit tough because late night is "me" time.

Now I understand your motivation for staying up late since I don't have kids. Usually I'm done with all chores well before 8pm. Often in bed by 9pm and  asleep soon thereafter. But I wake up around 5am most days. But for me there is a somewhat of a loose correlation between staying up late and screen watching (TV/computer/phone). So switching back to paper books at night instead of my beloved kindle.

[elaine amj]

Other than losing sleep, the big prob with staying up late is midnight snacking. At 11pm, I was hit by an intense craving for something...and most things I could think of were not hitting the spot.

So I got out of bed and walked to the kitchen to look around. Managed to muster the strength to walk out again only to turn around and walk back in. The only thing I wanted was a couple of packages of instant noodles. I negotiated with myself and packed it for lunch tomorrow. Walked out of the kitchen...made it a few more steps and then back in again. Filled a pot with water. Talked myself out of it and poured the water out. Immediately refilled the pot and put it on the stove. Then considered all the add-ons that I had to have (1 egg and some shredded chicken) and poured the water back out again and hightailed it to bed.

Yes, I am really that crazy.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[begood]

September 2016: 189
October 2016: 184
November 2016: 181
December 2016: 177
January 2017: 176
February 2017: 172
March 2017: 169
April 2017: 166
May 2017: 162

Goal weight: 157

Weighed in at the nutritionist's office today. Four more pounds! Five to go to reach my original goal. I hope to get to my goal by the time we leave for vacation June 23. That would basically require maintaining a "pound a week" plan. We'll see - end of school is chock a block with dinners out, receptions, parties, and desserts.

[elaine amj]

Wow - it has been a while since I have had the desire to post a weigh-in. Good thing I track manually on my fitbit account so I can still post my history.

Friday weigh-in

Jan 1: 139.6 lbs...Jan 6: 137.8 lbs....Jan 13: 139.2 lbs...Jan 20: 138 lbs.....Jan 27: 139.2 lbs
Feb 3: 138.6 lbs...Feb 10: 142 lbs.....Feb 17: 141.2 lbs...Feb 23: 140.4 lbs
Mar 3: 140.2 lbs...Mar 13: 144.6 lbs..Mar 16: 143.8 lbs...Mar 23: 140.8 lbs..Mar 30: 141.2 lbs
Apr 7: 139.2 lbs...Apr 14: 139.2 lbs..Apr 21: 138.4 lbs...Apr 28: 139.6 lbs...May 5: 136.6 lbs

Start weight: 139.6 lbs
Weight lost: 3 lbs
Goal weight: 125 lbs