Food, Exercise, or other Reports
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I do not like how my arms look in shirts either but I am not allowing that to sideline me... apparently that is what corona viruses are for.
@bmeadows380 I guess my question for you is what are you doing about your unfair self criticism? I do not think it is something for which you just accept. Appreciating your own awesome should be on your self improvement list right along with weight loss and improving fitness.
*lopsided grin* that is way, way harder than dropping 200 lbs-the weight loss has tangible, real world affects than can measure my success, at least. Just getting to the point where I can consider myself solidly mediocre would be an accomplishment; certainly not awesomeness
we're talking a selfview that has built up over a lifetime of internal monologue and interpretations of external factors from a variety of things, and unraveling that tangled mess of rubber bands is a project for sure. Especially as I can't find a way to change some of the major pillars that are supporting that low viewpoint due to financial, time, and opportunity constraints. That and I can't figure out where I'm messed up socially.
So logically, I can see where I'm probably being way too negative. But logic sadly rarely sways emotion or deep-seated beliefs; its easy to point out where I could be wrong, but to accept it and allow it to change my emotional side, not to mention fix a broken part of my conscience that is too sensitive? If I could figure that one out, there's all kinds of problems in my life that could be fixed!0 -
(In fact it boggles my mind when people tell me that counting points is easy and calories difficult. Or that eating mindfully and never taking seconds is easier, or.... )
I found it easier to count points than calories, at least at first. I think part of it was that just counting to 35 was easier than counting to 2000. Also WW had this weekly bank of flex points I could dip into. Helped cover some mistakes or plan for special occasions.
But I’ve never thought there’s anything magical about their point formula. Seems to be there to disguise the fact that they’re calorie counters so they can get copyright protection.
And @PAV888 somewhere you mention your quest for the tasty fake brownie. I’ve been in a lot of WW meetings. I used to think the funniest thing was the quest for the low point chocolate cake. Like seeking the WW Holy Grail.
I used to think WW was the ONLY way to lose weight....the first time I joined in the early 70s we met in a church and it was $2 a week!...the limits on foods was insane...no mayo,beef 3 times a week, fish 5 times a week, liver once a week,4 eggs a week,no pear and apple the same day,trade this for that and on and on..there were no “ points or calories” and no WW products...the recipes were almost inedible with ingredients that could not be found anywhere.....but we did lose weight...we were instructed that it was a combination of foods and chemical reactions of foods...thru the years I joined TOPS,went to diet doctors,etc but I always went back to WW....I must have joined at least 25 times until I finally started using fake names when I signed up so no one would know how many times I had failed!....each time I joined the program had changed until it was almost like a free for all with no restrictions!...the price had also gone up to $22 a week....I thought counting “ points” was hard after a life time of counting calories!...I find MFP so much easier to follow....2 -
@bmeadows380
I may have to come back tomorrow and reread that again. I am not feeling that sharp at the moment.
Here is what I see... over 3 weeks (21 days) you lost 8.6 pounds for an average weekly loss of 2.87 pounds per week. This means for that period of time you ate an average of 435 calories too little per day.
If you calculate your average consumption for that period of time (you have a spreadsheet now
) you can take your intake average and add it to your average deficit which is 1435 calories to get your current 3 week maintenance number.
You can do it the harder way for more accuracy which is to add everything you ate and add your entire deficit but the differences are usually minor. Since Jan 10 my average TDEE is 3514 while my more 'precise' TDEE is 2497.
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@bmeadows380
I may have to come back tomorrow and reread that again. I am not feeling that sharp at the moment.
Here is what I see... over 3 weeks (21 days) you lost 8.6 pounds for an average weekly loss of 2.87 pounds per week. This means for that period of time you ate an average of 435 calories too little per day.
If you calculate your average consumption for that period of time (you have a spreadsheet now ) you can take your intake average and add it to your average deficit which is 1435 calories to get your current 3 week maintenance number.
You can do it the harder way for more accuracy which is to add everything you ate and add your entire deficit but the differences are usually minor. Since Jan 10 my average TDEE is 3514 while my more 'precise' TDEE is 2497.
@NovusDies I usually have to do it the harder way because I can't seem to get the shortcuts when it comes to math. I've always had to do the long, drawn out process You should have seen the paper I went through in college Calculus and Linear Algebra!
But basically, I can take the 14,284 calories I ate this week, divide by 7 to get the average daily consumption of 2041 calories, and add back the missing 435 calories I should have been eating, that gives me a TDEE of 2,476. Or, wait, I need to add the extra 1,000 for the 2 lb deficit, don't I, to make my TDEE 3,476 - right? So when I go into diet break, if I keep my activity levels as they are (and they'll probably be close, especially the week of vacation, cause I plan to hike all over that state park, and its all hillside!), I should be eating 3,476 calories each day during the break, give or take for more or less exercise. And of course, adjusted for the losses of the next month.
I've been in deficit so long, I can't even fathom eating that many calories! lol0 -
conniewilkins56 wrote: »(In fact it boggles my mind when people tell me that counting points is easy and calories difficult. Or that eating mindfully and never taking seconds is easier, or.... )
I found it easier to count points than calories, at least at first. I think part of it was that just counting to 35 was easier than counting to 2000. Also WW had this weekly bank of flex points I could dip into. Helped cover some mistakes or plan for special occasions.
But I’ve never thought there’s anything magical about their point formula. Seems to be there to disguise the fact that they’re calorie counters so they can get copyright protection.
And @PAV888 somewhere you mention your quest for the tasty fake brownie. I’ve been in a lot of WW meetings. I used to think the funniest thing was the quest for the low point chocolate cake. Like seeking the WW Holy Grail.
I used to think WW was the ONLY way to lose weight....the first time I joined in the early 70s we met in a church and it was $2 a week!...the limits on foods was insane...no mayo,beef 3 times a week, fish 5 times a week, liver once a week,4 eggs a week,no pear and apple the same day,trade this for that and on and on..there were no “ points or calories” and no WW products...the recipes were almost inedible with ingredients that could not be found anywhere.....but we did lose weight...we were instructed that it was a combination of foods and chemical reactions of foods...thru the years I joined TOPS,went to diet doctors,etc but I always went back to WW....I must have joined at least 25 times until I finally started using fake names when I signed up so no one would know how many times I had failed!....each time I joined the program had changed until it was almost like a free for all with no restrictions!...the price had also gone up to $22 a week....I thought counting “ points” was hard after a life time of counting calories!...I find MFP so much easier to follow....
What's funny is the bolded statement is STILL being parlied around for reasons why people can't lose weight. Can't be too many calories! Nope!
lol
I tried weight watchers online in college in the early 2,000's but I couldn't stick with it as I felt like I was starving. And it was expensive. My Grandmother did TOPS, but I don't know much about it. For me, it was easier to just work with the actual calories rather than trying to convert to points. MFP is much easier for me, too - not to mention much cheaper! lol
The faking name reminds of me each time I get back out my Wii fit I'll dig it out, thinking it will help me with my activity, then after going through some of the games, realize that there's just not a whole lot of calorie burn going on, and I leave it alone for a few months. Then when I dig it back out, the little Wii board guy scolds me for being gone so long!
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I started with my new, higher calorie limit yesterday, and I felt rather stuffed going to bed Course, my appetite wanted more, as usual, even if my stomach was telling me it definitely wasn't hungry, but right now, I can ignore the brain hunger. I also managed to go to bed a little earlier last night and got a little more sleep - didn't even have my usual awake period at around 3:30 like I normally do (telling me the sleeplessness of the last couple of days was catching up to me).
The scale was up this morning, but I"m not the least worried about it. It breaks a pattern of continued lows I've had all week, and since I ate more, that meant more carbs so more water not to mention more food in my system right now. Besides, it wasn't up more than maybe a pound, anyway.
I am going to have to reverse my typical workout pattern today, since there is an increasing chance of rain during the afternoon. So I'll need to take my long walk at lunch and hold the aerobics video until evening. I"m thinking of changing my walk today, too. I live in a town at the foot of a mountain (Appalachians), and while the town itself is mostly flat with some lighter grades coming in and leaving down, and most of the roads in town and leaving it stay mostly flat as they run along the valleys, there is one road that leaves town and goes up to the top of the mountain and then runs along the ridge.
Looking at topo maps of the ares, the lowest point in my town, at the river, is 2,400 ft in elevation, and the high point of the mountain, right behind my house, is around 3,400 ft, so it's 1,000 ft climb from bottom to top. However, the road crossing the mountain doesn't go to the top but climbs up the side then runs along the side to cross at a slightly lower point 2 1/2 miles from town at around 3,300 ft. That crossing point is 3.6 miles from my house according to Google. I obviously don't have time for a 7 mile hike (and doubt I have the stamina built up for that in any case!), but going up that road, the 2 mile point from my house is sitting right at 2,900 ft, so one way to that point from my house is going to be approximately a 500 ft climb in elevation. It'll slow me down, but I think I'm ready to give it a try; we'll see how far up I get - I might not make it to the 2 mile point just because I need to keep track of time, since I need to take this walk at lunch. We'll just have to see how far I can get in an hour round trip!2 -
bmeadows380 wrote: »I do not like how my arms look in shirts either but I am not allowing that to sideline me... apparently that is what corona viruses are for.
@bmeadows380 I guess my question for you is what are you doing about your unfair self criticism? I do not think it is something for which you just accept. Appreciating your own awesome should be on your self improvement list right along with weight loss and improving fitness.
*lopsided grin* that is way, way harder than dropping 200 lbs-the weight loss has tangible, real world affects than can measure my success, at least. Just getting to the point where I can consider myself solidly mediocre would be an accomplishment; certainly not awesomeness we're talking a selfview that has built up over a lifetime of internal monologue and interpretations of external factors from a variety of things, and unraveling that tangled mess of rubber bands is a project for sure. Especially as I can't find a way to change some of the major pillars that are supporting that low viewpoint due to financial, time, and opportunity constraints. That and I can't figure out where I'm messed up socially.
So logically, I can see where I'm probably being way too negative. But logic sadly rarely sways emotion or deep-seated beliefs; its easy to point out where I could be wrong, but to accept it and allow it to change my emotional side, not to mention fix a broken part of my conscience that is too sensitive? If I could figure that one out, there's all kinds of problems in my life that could be fixed!
Logic seems to be winning with you quite often because you can see the problem. You understand that the thoughts are unhelpful/hurtful. Despite having them you are able to push forward in some areas of your life. You are more of a rock star than you imagine.
So if you can do it some you could potentially do it more. It seems like a project worth pursuing. I would definitely stop saying that you are self-critical. That is almost sugar coating it. Call it something less appealing like unfair or unreasonable. We usually do not like to see ourselves as unfair or unreasonable. If you have another core belief that you are a generally fair person then it would make being unfair with yourself unacceptable.
But this is mostly out of my depth and beyond the scope of this group. I encourage you to view your self improvement goals as more broad and do not think anything is beyond your ability to improve.1 -
Here is something new for me. I didn't realize it was happening but apparently yesterday was my 11th straight 20K+ step day. I usually hit it some but never this consistently.1
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bmeadows380 wrote: »@bmeadows380
I may have to come back tomorrow and reread that again. I am not feeling that sharp at the moment.
Here is what I see... over 3 weeks (21 days) you lost 8.6 pounds for an average weekly loss of 2.87 pounds per week. This means for that period of time you ate an average of 435 calories too little per day.
If you calculate your average consumption for that period of time (you have a spreadsheet now ) you can take your intake average and add it to your average deficit which is 1435 calories to get your current 3 week maintenance number.
You can do it the harder way for more accuracy which is to add everything you ate and add your entire deficit but the differences are usually minor. Since Jan 10 my average TDEE is 3514 while my more 'precise' TDEE is 2497.
@NovusDies I usually have to do it the harder way because I can't seem to get the shortcuts when it comes to math. I've always had to do the long, drawn out process You should have seen the paper I went through in college Calculus and Linear Algebra!
But basically, I can take the 14,284 calories I ate this week, divide by 7 to get the average daily consumption of 2041 calories, and add back the missing 435 calories I should have been eating, that gives me a TDEE of 2,476. Or, wait, I need to add the extra 1,000 for the 2 lb deficit, don't I, to make my TDEE 3,476 - right? So when I go into diet break, if I keep my activity levels as they are (and they'll probably be close, especially the week of vacation, cause I plan to hike all over that state park, and its all hillside!), I should be eating 3,476 calories each day during the break, give or take for more or less exercise. And of course, adjusted for the losses of the next month.
I've been in deficit so long, I can't even fathom eating that many calories! lol
Your TDEE is about the same is mine if both our calculations hold. That seems plausible.
The fun thing is that your TDEE will probably be higher while on vacation but it is hard to know how much higher. Because you will have been in a 1k deficit when you start eating more your unintentional NEAT will likely go up too. The last time I went on vacation I was bouncing off the cabin walls I had so much extra energy. In addition your BMR will climb back up too. The frustrating thing about weight loss math is that there is always a curveball.1 -
I've always thought a psychologist would have a field day with me lol
But yeah, this group focuses on the physical health; mental health is a whole lot trickier.
But hey, perhaps one of these days, I'll lose the weight and finally be able to attract prince charming to ride me off into the sunset - well, in my case, I'd rather leave prince charming behind and find me a cowboy type to ride off into the mountains with
Because despite the many cases of failed marriages around me, I do know of some that work well, and know that there are some really awesome men out there, too.....course at my age, those are pretty well taken......
Gives me a nice image to fantasize about and get out of my head for a while on my walk *laugh*1 -
Thanks for the openness!
My MFP target weightloss is 1 lbs/week. With the "sedentary" option, I get 1600 calories a day. With "slightly active" I get 1820.
The change in weight during the past 30 days was 11 lbs from 218.5 (18 March) to 207.5 (16 April).
Your 30 day average rate of loss is 2.56 pounds per week. This makes your average daily deficit about 1280 calories. Your target deficit is 500 calories so you are more than doubling it.
I am not a huge fan of making big changes on 30 days of information. There is always the possibility of a shift in water weight inflating or deflating the outcome. If you are not feeling fatigued I would definitely up your calories to 'Slightly Active' which, if the numbers hold, will drop you back down to 2 pounds per week. In 2 weeks and then in another 30 days we should run your numbers again.
If that is way too low of an adjustment the two things to watch out for are low energy and difficulty controlling hunger. One of both may not be happening daily it may be intermittent.
Thank you for the calculations and advice! I looked back at my MFP info and it seems that my rate loss was very similar 4 years ago, and I had a plateau at 196 lbs (I'm at 207 now). So, for now, I'll do as you said, increase the calories to 'slightly active' for a two week trial, and take it from there.
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I've also tried WW many years ago, but never figured out the point system. I find calories much easier to understand.
@bmeadows380 It's amazing you are now in the moderately active category!! It's awesome you've built this good habit! Also, your planned vacation sounds lovely - I really enjoy hiking.
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Ok. I admit I am back to being stubborn for a moment. I have an unusually low weight today but I am not planning on making any adjustments just yet. I generally trust the low numbers because when losing weight they are usually either accurate or accurate enough unless you are dehydrated. However my numbers have been lining up pretty nicely for some time and even though I suspected that my eating was under a little this would be another 200 calorie adjustment. I was sure I wasn't more than 100.
Also, this number has shown up out of left field. My weights have been in a range that has trended down like I would expect. This doesn't fit. However I have only been out of maintenance for a short time and I have very little experience losing at 1 pound per week so I am open to being wrong.
I think I will give this weight a week to see if it is an imposter or if I am setting myself up for someone else to lecture me.1 -
Ok. I admit I am back to being stubborn for a moment. I have an unusually low weight today but I am not planning on making any adjustments just yet. I generally trust the low numbers because when losing weight they are usually either accurate or accurate enough unless you are dehydrated. However my numbers have been lining up pretty nicely for some time and even though I suspected that my eating was under a little this would be another 200 calorie adjustment. I was sure I wasn't more than 100.
Also, this number has shown up out of left field. My weights have been in a range that has trended down like I would expect. This doesn't fit. However I have only been out of maintenance for a short time and I have very little experience losing at 1 pound per week so I am open to being wrong.
I think I will give this weight a week to see if it is an imposter or if I am setting myself up for someone else to lecture me.
*laughs* won't be me, from Ms. Pot to Mr. Kettle
Your spreadsheet is much more detailed than the one I set up this week; at this point, I'm just getting the formula for BMR set up and tracking daily intake and weight range and trying to get an idea of how to predict rate of loss. Though I think I've got something wrong - I am tracking the trend weight instead of actual weight; I should probably change that.
IT's going to take me a while to understand how all those numbers fit.
But as you've said yourself, a week or two in the grand scheme of things isn't much time-especially when your body wants to be unpredictable 2 -
My spreadsheet started as such a simple little thing to track my weight trends. Over time it has gained weight as I have lost it. It is is now a massive entity stretching from A to CF.2
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@NovusDies the data just pulls you in lol
I got 20 minutes in to start the morning off on the elliptical. At lunch, I got a 4.25 mile walk in with the 1st half being mostly uphill--and let me say that contrary to what most would think, going downhill may be easier on the lungs, but its actually harder on my legs! Doesn't help that most of the road going up the hill was graveled. Going up on gravel, with me leaning forward into the climb, doesn't bother me. But going downhill on gravel, when my center of balance wants to pull me forward and feeling that gravel slide under my feet, is worlds harder. My legs were feeling it by the time I got back to the bottom!
My sister wanted me to go with her to Walmart and since I needed cleaning supplies, I went (hey, she sprung for dinner of drive-thru, which doesn't haven't very often at all!) Since Ih ad done the uphill walk at lunch, I worked in a medium half-cut tea (half-sweet, half-unsweet) as a little treat for myself, but when we go to the drive-thru, they didn't have any sweet tea, so I ended up with an unsweet tea - and extra calories to spend (so I was able to eat the entire turkey slider without having to pitch the top bun lol)
Then I came home, ate my turkey salad, and did my aerobics video, and it was the hardest one I've done yet - a mix of high and low cardio with resistance in between. My average heart rate was 125 for the 29 minute session!
So, since I now have more calories I need to spend, I'm having 1/2 cup of halo top strawberry icecream, 1 serving of frozen, organic whole strawberries (nuked because I want them soft), and, since I coudln't splurge on my tea, I'm instead treading myself to a little reddi-whip on top of the icecream and 1 single hershy kiss
And that was after the walk today earned me some of that peanutbutter pie I made yesterday!
And best, yet, I'm over protein goal by 5 and over fiber by 5, and actually hit fat goal on the dot - even with the added numbers due to the exercise!
It's a little mind-boggling, though, to see that the activity today earned me another 510 calories, and that's only counting half. But then again, I also got 15,747 steps in and counting today, so definitely active, whether my brain wants to admit it or not. So 510 extra calories due to direct exercise, and I've added back in 200 calories to my daily deficit goal from 1400 back up to 1600 that will hopefully cover the rest of those steps. If not, I can always adjust back down after a couple of weeks.
tomorrow is Saturday, which is usually a loose day because its my chores day or running day for things at home. but its supposed to be cold and rainy, so the step count will be low tomorrow. My plan is to start the day with an aerobic session, and then I need to vacuum and mop the house. I'll try to get the evening ended with an elliptical session. There won't be an extra walk in there because of the weather, so I won't be getting back those extra calories, but Sunday is to be pretty, so I should get a good walk in after church then.2 -
I was a little dehydrated yesterday and today's weight is back up to a more realistic (in my opinion) number. If it holds it will bump my activity multiplier to 1.91 from 1.88.
My insanity continues as today's morning stroll of
6 miles was almost all done in the rain. I am not sure why I feel so compelled to get that first 600 calories of exercise done but I do. Considering I have a fairly active day of chores ahead of me it was unnecessary to come back in soaking wet but I am relentless.3 -
I was a little dehydrated yesterday and today's weight is back up to a more realistic (in my opinion) number. If it holds it will bump my activity multiplier to 1.91 from 1.88.
My insanity continues as today's morning stroll of
6 miles was almost all done in the rain. I am not sure why I feel so compelled to get that first 600 calories of exercise done but I do. Considering I have a fairly active day of chores ahead of me it was unnecessary to come back in soaking wet but I am relentless.
@NovusDies
Well, I hope wherever you are, it was at least a warm rain; walking in a summer rain might not be so bad. where I'm at, though, this morning its a cold rain/snow mix and the outside temp isn't even above 40 yet. I'm afraid I don't have the fortitude for a walk in that
But it kept you cooled down, right? And I suppose it energizes you for the chores......
It's interesting how much water can mess around with scale weight!
this morning's weight for me was down again. I upped my calories Thursday, and saw a 1.1 lb jump up yesterday morning. This morning, that 1 lb was gone. The 1 lb gain didn't bother me as I knew the extra calories were inviting extra water weight, and I'm happy to see that its quickly sliding back off.
I got a 46 minute elliptical session in this morning and am getting ready to try to get an aerobics video in. I've been working through a set of videos I found on YouTube by TeamBodyProject which have been the ones I've liked the best so far - many of the others that I poked around with just didn't seem to get my heart rate going like these do. But these are definitely a challenge! They've got one for beginners called RealStart which has the 1st week available for free, and a couple of other videos on Youtube for free as well, and I've been working through them. The first video for the first week I couldn't get to play earlier this week, so I think I may circle around and try to get it going to day; perhaps it will be a little lighter to give me something of a break from yesterday's killer routine. The last one in the set is a beginner pilates and I just don't know if I"m interested in that or not. I might give it a whirl to see if it helps with stretching and balance, but this morning, I want to get the heart rate up!
I had a quick peanut butter sandwich this morning (with only 1/2 serving of peanut butter) to give me a quick boost before the elliptical; I'll allow myself to have the rest of my breakfast after the aerobics session - that should get me back into the green so I can have what I have planned.
Then we'll see how many house chores I can get done today. At the minimum, I need to vacuum, and I think I'm going to try to get a full-blown mop in. Last week, I used the swiffer wetjet on my floor, but it doesn't look it; a real mopping always seems to look way better. I've got a steam mop, too, but even that doesn't seem to get the floor looking as good as a good, old-fashioned mopping does. Not to mentioned the exercise that comes with wringing out the mop and pushing it across the floor!
Then we'll see if I can get around to getting the dusting done. That's one chore I always seem to avoid lol
That's, and putting my clean clothes away - but hey, I did finally get that basket of towels folded and put away!
My fitness monitor has a function on it to monitor sleep patterns, and I tried that out this week, but its not accurate at all. for instance, last night, it has my sleep starting at 11:34 and ending this morning at 8:02, but I know for a fact I didn't go to sleep until sometime after midnight because I looked at the clock, and I was awakened by my cat at 7:30 this morning. I also had a period around 3-4 of wakefulness because I got up to use the restroom, which doesn't show there, either.
I like the monitor's set up, don't' mind the app, and loved the cheaper price, but in this case, I'm getting what I paid for - I went for this because I didn't want to shell out the cost of a fitbit, but the cheaper one definitely has its glitches.2 -
I have a Versa Fitbit I bought on sale for $100 and I really like it....2
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Thanks, Connie! When I get some extra money, I'll have to look into it. I had thought about getting one of these fit pros for my cousin for her birthday, but I'll have to keep mine for a bit more to see if it continues to glitch like it is.
As I mentioned in another post, this has been a non-activity day for me, which mean I had to stick to my normal deficit with no activity calories to add on. In order to make protein goal (which I still missed but only by 1 so no biggie), I didn't want to use a protein shake so I instead defrosting a 4oz portion of lean ground turkey. I cooked it through, then cut it up into chunks. I had 1 serving left of a can of Bush's fiesta style pinto beans in the fridge, so I mixed them in with the ground turkey. I also heated up 1 box of Green Giant Antioxidant blend vegetables in the microwave, and once they were cooked I tossed them in with the beans and turkey and stirred everything together to get the sauce spread evenly. I also had planned for 1/4 cup of cottage cheese today, so I tossed it in as well, mixed it all up, salted a little, and ate this for my supper. What surprised me was how good it was! lol2
