DECEMBER 2014 DAILY CHALLENGES

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I need a bit of intense training before I go face family for a whole week at the end of the month. I need to focus on the skills I am learning to be a healthier me so that I have them solid throughout the holidays. My two Thanksgiving meals went just fine, especially with the most important part of getting right back on track, but that was two meals, versus a whole week!

1 december 2014:

Stay hydrated!

I chose a simple challenge that doesn't require any preparation. What are you going to do today to stay hydrated?

I will be drinking plenty of hot herbal tea (2 cups) and room temperature water (4 - 24oz. bottles).

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2 december 2014

Day 2 will require a bit more prep for some people, especially if you have kids.

Mindful eating: Designate at least one meal today that you will eat alone, sitting down. Set aside the computer, the phone, and all the normal distractions. Plate all of your food and eat it slowly, paying attention to flavors and textures. Do not load your fork until you have finished with what is in your mouth. Every few bites, set the fork down and take a sip of water or count to ten.

The purpose of this exercise is to be aware of what you eat. Too many of us just eat because it is there and/or shovel food in mindlessly. By being more aware, it becomes easier to control portions and still feel satisfied. As a bonus, because you are probably eating slower than usual, your food will settle into your stomach and trigger your "full" sensations sooner after you have finished, or even during your meal (in which case you should probably stop).

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Well, breakfast didn't go so mindfully, I guess. I got distracted by nature. I took my oatmeal outside to get some fresh air before it started raining for three days straight, but the storm blew in as I was eating, which was fun to watch. And then I had to get out of the rain with a couple of bites left. I honestly don't know if I was filling up my spoon while still chewing the previous bit or not.

Silverdracos

I wish I'd read this before breakfast. . . but since my breakfast is a MR shake I don't know that I'd really want to contemplate it in depth I'll try to keep it in mind for dinner though.

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For those who like to plan in advance:

3 december 2014

Give yourself credit! create a list of everything you did today that got you one step closer to your goals. Did you exercise? Did you stay hydrated? Did you eat within your calorie goals? Did you even just once choose the right thing over something that wasn't on your plan? Did you overeat, but stop short of binging? No matter how small or big, write it down and feel the glow!

Why it helps: We get into that all or nothing mentality that results in one slip being labelled as "failure." Instead, we need to focus on our successes and every step in the right direction to keep a positive attitude and limit the frustration.

Silverdracos

Yesterday I did put in earbuds with classical music playing, but I figured it would be easier to eat mindfully without having "The West Wing" to distract me. There wasn't much I could do about the interruptions from the kids though - even though two out of three were done before I could start eating. But I do think it's something I'll try to do more often as it did help me feel more satisfied. And for me that's a huge issue.

Today, the biggest thing (besides the workout) was planning my food out ahead of time. Wednesdays have been partially out of my control because the boys and I were eating with a group of people before going on to activities. But dinner is cancelled till Jan, and we aren't going to have time to eat at home before hand. When we have to be fed and there half an hour after I leave work drive thru happens. So I planned. Before I even ate lunch I had mapped out the rest of the day to stay within my goals despite having a meal handed to me through the window.

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That's wonderful, Silverdracos! I also find it very helpful to plan out my day ahead of time.

My positives for today:
-went to the gym (I don't usually, but it is raining)
-stuck to the plan
-read through my motivation list
-allowed my knees to heal from the last few days (taking rest is a big deal for me)
-despite my knees, finding ways to move. I used the bike at the gym after I decided the treadmill was not helping and I have been swing my arms around like a crazy lady all day long: I *will* get to 10k registered on my Jawbone, even though most of it won't be actual steps.

4 December 2014
Fruits and veggies: Make sure you get in five servings of fruits and veggies today. Personally, I try to aim for 4 veg and one fruit, but tastes and nutritional needs vary.

That's it. It will hopefully seem simple today, but how about on Christmas Day? Or your next birthday? If you get in the habit of double checking on a regular basis, you are more likely to make the effort to eat a few more veggies over the holidays, as well.

iReadYerMind

Aw, wish I'd have discovered this thread from the start! But now that I'm here...

Dec 3rd positives:
- Got a little more cardio in than usual
- Did a full leg workout instead of a half-assed one
- Drank lots more water than usual
- Stayed within my calorie goal for the day

Dec 4th fruits and veggies:
- Planning on a sizeable chicken Caesar salad for dinner, with fresh tomatoes thrown in (Approx 3 servings for the salad, 1 for tomato)
- Lunch included celery stalks and veggie-based protein shake powder (Another serving or two here)

So I think I'm doing okay with that! I'm watching my carb intake since I tend to go a little overboard, so fruits are usually out of the question for me.

Thanks for posting this challenge! I tend to get a little bored with my diet plans and this should help prevent that.

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I am so glad people are joining in: it encourages me to set new goals for myself. If you are joining, don't forget to bookmark the discussion (Star on the original post) so that you can find it again.

For the day 4 fruit and veg challenge, I had raisins, a pear, two servings of asparagus and stew that was mostly vegetable, including a "servings in container 5" bag of shredded cabbage for the four servings of stew.

My positives for today:
-I got out the hula hoop! Hooping makes everything better
-ate my five a day
-came up with future challenges as I read through the list of positives I keep in my journal.

5 December 2014

A measuring challenge. It can become tempting to skip the process of measuring and weighing your food. Today, choose at least three things you would normally measure or weigh. Serve what you believe a serving to be, *then* measure/weight it. Report back here with how close/far off you were.

Please note: there is no rule that you have to always eat the listed serving. I add a half serving each of raisins and almonds to my oatmeal. I can do this because I use my scale, so I get to enter it accurately as a serving. My husband watches me weight out most things, then tells me how many servings he wants.

If you don't currently weigh and measure your foods, this challenge can be a real wake up call! If you don't have a food scale, just measure for today, but you should be aware that for foods that say "x pieces per serving," you may notice that all those pieces aren't even the same size!

The last time I tried this, I had a few confirmations that I am actually getting pretty good at this, and one eye opener: I had set out TWICE as much pasta as I thought! The highest calorie thing on my menu for the whole day and I had doubled it!!

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Everything was pretty close, except the PB. Interestingly enough, I always underserve myself on peanut butter.

Mindful eating has pretty much been out the door today

+Nonetheless, I did stick to the plan, as a matter of fact, I still have a snack left, if I decide I want it.
+I got in 10k steps, 25 minutes on the bike, and full body weight workout, or at least as much of one as you can when you can't squat right now.


6 December 2014

Have you made a list? What are your motivations? What things would you like to be able to do? Is there anything on that list that you could do now, you just don't think you deserve it for some reason? Sometimes we need a reminder of why we are working so hard and skipping another dessert. Motivation and goal lists are really helpful to go to as reminders. I read mine everyday.

The list I have in my hardcopy journal right now:
-move around the boat better (I live on a 40' sailboat and there are somethings hubby has to do because he is smaller around. There are also some places that you have to take a giant step, with nothing to hang on to. When we are at dock, I would like to be able to step off the cabin top with going to the spreaders)
-have more stamina
-look in the mirror with pride
-have more options for clothes (I am an odd size, the plus size stores don't fit me right, the regular sizes don't go around my waist)
-not worry about diabetes (rampant in my obese family)
-take classes with aerials and do acroyoga
-avoid comments from father in law (this one makes me sad when I read through it, sad that I let his stupid comments affect me so much, when I know how much of what comes out of his mouth is BS about everything under the sun)
-be able to bike the bay (I actually think I am ready, but hubby seems reluctant. Since he will be accompanying me on his row bike, I can't push him too hard)

Silverdracos

Dec 4th - I went to the Dentist and spent a large portion of the day not wanting to chew my tongue and feeling a little sick thank to the meds. But the day was almost entirely veg, ( turns out my morning shake is vegan, who knew?) except for the little bit of chicken that was in my hot and sour soup. So almost a success!

Dec 5th - Totally forgot about this thread Boo on me. I do really like to measure/weigh things though. I know portion sizes are my problem so in the last month I've tried to do it for as many meals as possible. It doesn't help though that so many recipies say things like "serves 6" am I supposed to divide the whole thing out first into equal shares? I tend to do a lot of bulk/three to one cooking with one meal on the table and two going in the freezer for later. So I bought a scale a few years ago for that - because not every dish is easily eyeballed into thirds Now I just wish it was more sensitive for individual snacks and such.

Dec 6th - I've got a list that I made a while back with some notes added
I want to lose weight because:
I want more energy (MS sucks the life out of you)
I want to be able to breathe ( So does asthma lol)
I want to stay healthy (The Dr says I'm PreDiabetic, I really want to avoid going all the way)
I want to be able to keep up with the kids (I want to encourage them to be active - hard when you don't want to get off your rear)
I want to feel attractive (because I just don't anymore)
I want to stop putting holes in my jeans (I'm not talking about the knees)
I want to feel confident (because while I used to be good about not letting my flaw bother me I can't seem to find that ability anymore)
I want to wear heels again (sexy shoes hurt more now)
I want to feel strong again (all of the above)

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Silverdracos, that is an awesome list!

Food scales are small and cheap. I live on a mid sized sailboat and I make room for one!

7 December 2014

You gotta move it, move it! If your goal is to be healthy, you really have to include exercise. The three major forms are strength, cardio and flexibility. Even if you don't have an actual routine for each one, commit now to adding one exercise of each to your week. Where will you fit it in?

Everyday: 10k steps
Monday: bodyweight exercises and stretching (mid morning)
Tuesday: swing dance lessons (6:30-8:30)
Wednesday: bodyweight exercises and stretching (mid morning)
Thursday: bike ride or walk on the beach (mid morning)
Friday: bodyweight exercises and stretching (mid morning)
Saturday: something fun with hubby (no, that is not a euphemism)
Sunday: social dancing (swing or ballroom)

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8 December 2014

Pre-planning: Draw up your food plan for tomorrow (Tuesday). What will you eat for each meal and snack. Write it down someplace and tomorrow cross out the foods you don't eat. Add a column so that you can write down any additional foods that you eat beyond your plan. What reasons did you have for eating differently from your plan? Did you plan something that you ran out of? Did you forget to add the condiments when you made the plan? Or did you just really want that chocolate? (I keep a written journal, which is why my MFP diary looks hit or miss sometimes - I just log once in awhile to verify my calories)

I thought this was ridiculous and I never understood people who pre logged their meals. Who has that kind of consistency in their lives?! (I still couldn't do it on a weekly basis, like I know some people do) However, it has really been helping me. I no longer justify having sweets every single day just because I have calories left (I still do almost every day, don't get me wrong). If I am heading out for errands, I know exactly what snack I can grab to avoid justifying going to McDonald's once I am out there. I used this to pick a healthy choice when we last went on a road trip, instead of just grabbing french fries someplace, like I used to. As my very slim husband says, even he has a plan of some kind. If he doesn't have what he needs to make his lunch salad, he plans out where he is going to pick up a sandwich and he picks it up on his way to work. Of course, his goal is to get as many calories as possible in as little time as possible, but it was interesting to realize that he does mentally what I was so resistant to doing. For the record, my husband has as great a fear of being hungry as any dieter, he just doesn't overeat because of it.

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9 December 2014

Distraction techniques. Personally, I am a boredom eater (and a stress eater), so these are particularly important to me. However, for anyone, when you are hungry, but just not ready to eat yet (ie, want to put it off until you get home to your planned food or waiting out dinner rather than snacking on everything that is going into the dinner pots), it can be helpful to have a list of things that are helpful for you. Make a list of ten things right now. Then, the next time you are hungry (or think you are) try a few of them out. You should even consider postponing a meal or snack by an hour to practice this under controlled conditions. What worked? What didn't. A classic example is to brush your teeth to signal that you are done for the day so that you don't indulge in the evening munchies. This works NOT AT ALL for me.

Playing around on the internet (especially these forums) keeps me busy, getting lost in a book helps and going for a walk really helps as well. Oh, and don't forget the other classic: it is easy to confuse hunger and thirst. Try drinking a glass of water and waiting ten minutes to see if you are still hungry.

Silverdracos

Dec 7th - I'm in my 5th week of Daily Burn's True Beginner program (3rd tier of workouts) - which I love because I can do it without having to watch myself for slurred words the rest of the day from fatigue. It has three rotating routines and an optional "mobility" workout on the rest day that I think of as synchronized flailing. On the days where I'm not 100% I can still do the workout, but when I'm up to it I can absolutely push until I'm sore the next day. Of course that kind of makes me sad too because I know that this is just one step above doing water aerobics with the old ladies in the heated community center pool. Still it's the kind of thing I need to be able to work UP to a regular "beginner" workout. I really needed to have the Doctor tell me that I was pushing too hard in the past. The goal she actually gave me was to start by working out for 20 minutes once a week, so she might STILL say I'm pushing too hard lol.

Dec 8th - Breakfast is usually a shake, and I really prefer to meal plan dinners a month at a time. It prevents me from standing in front of the fridge at 6:30 with a blank expression and hungry kids harassing me. So it's not uncommon for me to input dinner before I decide what I'm going to eat for lunch. Especially if I know I'm not making dinner, I'll do my best to map out what I think I'm going to be eating so I don't go over. Of course Tuesday is one of the worst days to try to do this on because I'm not responsible for dinner and I really can't predict what the boyfriend will have (or not have) waiting when I get home. Anyway, I don't know why, but when I've already entered something and allocated my calories I find it a lot easier to avoid temptation.

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Hey! Don't knock water aerobics! Some days, that is the only movement I can handle.

10 December 2014

REWARD YOURSELF: Set up a schedule of non-food rewards. In the past, I have used days logged in to MFP or months on the program. I no longer have consistent internet, so this time I am using inches lost.

Except, I still haven't actually bought my earrings from reaching my first goal. Evidently, I am not all that motivated by rewards. Just in case, though, I am working on a list of rewards that aren't chocolate. Unfortunately, everything I have come up with is pretty pricey.

-dance workshops
-zumba class
-new clothes in smaller sizes (I really get these as needed, but heh, it is always rewarding)
-an LED hula hoop
-acroyoga class when I am no longer "overweight" by BMI or my husband decides he is comfortable trying to lift me, whichever I can actually measure at the time

Silverdracos

I'm the queen of using being lazy and easily distracted to my advantage. Having to get more food out is frequently enough reason for me to avoid seconds - or even just leaving my comfy spot on the couch and having to reclaim it from the kids. . . And give me a book or an ipad full of games and yes, I can forget I'm hungry for hours. It's dangerous on days when I have to cook though because I'm thrown into food land while starving. Snacking happens.

Since I'm almost 10 lbs down I was planning on getting some new workout gear as a reward, but since Christmas is rapidly approaching I really don't want to pull anything out of the budget for my kids. Maybe I'll just spend the day in the bathtub reading dirty free e-books and ignoring the family as a reward instead.

And I probably would have done the water-aerobics if the membership fee to that pool wasn't more than a gym membership.

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Silverdracos wrote: »

Maybe I'll just spend the day in the bathtub reading dirty free e-books and ignoring the family as a reward instead.

That sounds like a wonderful reward!

11 December 2014

Be your own best friend: If your best friend came to you and said that their new project was impossible, they had a bad day, so clearly it will never be finished...What would you say to them? How would you encourage them to go on? Are you ready to tell yourself these things when the going gets rough or when you slip up?

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12 December 2014

With the holidays nearly upon us, we need to build up a store of coping strategies for food pushers and other family annoyances. What do you say to people who insist you try this, don't think you should eat that, etc.?

Obviously, the best answer is "No, thank you," if you really don't want to have something. Locked in the house for hours and hours can actually have a benefit: "I will try some later, if that is OK," also becomes an option.

I really dread dealing with the inlaws. None of them have ever really had a weight problem, so it is fascinating for them to talk about how great someone looks after they lost weight and tell you what works for them. As she ages, my mother in law just skips meals, for example (doesn't work for me, as I just eat more at the next one). Luckily, we have had a major life style change since they last saw us, so I hope to get away with saying that I lost weight because I am moving so much more in my new environment and hope that they don't think about my eating at all. I just have to get my husband on board, as he usually expresses pride at how hard I am working at "eating responsibly." If all else fails, I am going to go workout, even if I have to do it in the freezing rain.

The only issue in my own family is that with a bunch of teenagers and young men who still have that metabolism, we have to have food around constantly. Luckily, most of the family is making better and better choices as we age and we have been incorporating movement into the holidays. And I don't really have to talk about it because we have so many food/weight issues in the family that everyone understands that it just isn't what you talk about in group discussions. Furthermore, most of them are polite enough to not tell you how horrible you looked when you were fatter.

Silverdracos

11th- I spent years in a relationship with an addict, and desperately trying to get him to see that a slip was only bad if you stayed on the ground after you fell. You just needed to get back up and keep on moving. I'm trying to be very honest with myself from the get- go. I only really feel bad about food choices if I feel like I didn't have a choice in them. I'm ok with an occasional splurge or treat as long as I weighed the pros and cons beforehand. But I'm also finding that the less I eat things that are on the junky end of the scales, the less I'm craving them. I don't miss the burgers and fries as much as I miss the convenience of them. I've already forgiven myself for Christmas lol

Silverdracos

Dec 12th ~ Work is going to be harder than home. Most of the Adults in my family are conscious of maintaining their bodies if not actively managing their weight, so they "get it". We've also got some fantastic cooks - so you know we know how to eat. For the most part I'm going to make an effort to NOT drink a bottle of wine by myself, pay attention to my body's (barely there) satiation signals, and keep grazing to a minimum.

Work though has those guys that must know WHY I don't want a beer. Which of course they scoff at. Its nice that they don't seem to think I need to drop a few (50) pounds, but it makes it harder to be strong. Maybe they're worried about making inappropriate comments in front of my Dad. LOL

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Well, it has been a tough weekend for me. I aggravated my always iffy back (degenerative discs that easily become herniated) and am just a step above bed rest. As such, my focus has changed to be very specific to my own issues so that I don't backslide because of this limitation.

1) not binging our of boredom, not resorting to junk and fast food just because I can't stand very long in the kitchen (In the past, I have eaten almost exclusively drive thru and delivery when this gets really bad)
2) exercise = physical therapy. I took off the Jawbone UP so that I am not trying to move more to meet those goals, as it is counterproductive right now.
3) research on fasting for healing. I had already been doing some research and considering exploring water fasts next year, but if there is any chance that it can help my back heal faster so that I can get into a routine again, I think it is worth exploring now.

So, I guess that can lead into another daily reflection:

15 December 2015

What is your biggest challenge in weight loss and maintenance? How do you face that challenge?