Weight-loss "task-force" challenge
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Decent day yesterday. Under 245 cal. and 9 SPs, and down 3.6 pounds. We'll see what tomorrow (weigh-in day at WW) brings.0
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Reached goal targets on Monday.1
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Today is day 24 of the omer. Today's quote from Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks:
"The more you celebrate the good, the more good you discover that is worthy of celebration."
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I'm putting yesterday into the "win" column! I again had some significant cravings after dinner, but again, recognized that they're just cravings that are probably secondary to the habits I developed (of snacking/drinking after dinner) rather than hunger or anything like that. I made myself a little tea to "trick" myself into thinking I was having a treat and managed to avoid going down the wrong path. All in all, a good effort.
I'm finding two aspects of this challenge helpful to me right now.
First, I do like having a set goal to work on that is more process-related than goal-related. I like having to come back here and report on my progress, and specifically, like being able to decide if I met my goal, or didn't meet my goal.
Second, I like taking a moment and thinking through the last day (rather than the last week). I'm finding it helpful to "nit-pick" myself a bit more than usual. If I wait for the whole week, I tend to forget the specific day-to-day details. I'm not saying that I want to have such a deep focus on my process every single day, but for this time-limited challenge, I'm finding it useful.
So, rinse-and-repeat!1 -
I've found that double checking my trackers in the evening, I seem to keep my snacking "inbounds". Down 1.4 pounds, officially (235.2) , at WW this morning. That's the lowest since 5//23/2014 (233.8).
Vigilance pays off.1 -
Today is day 25 of the omer. Today's quote from Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks:
“In any relationship that matters to you, deliver praise daily. Seeing and praising the good in people makes them better people, makes you a better person, and strengthens the bond between you.”
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Another successful day is in the books. No snacks and no alcohol. Plus, I've been sticking to my exercise plan. Go team go!
Congrats to @Al_Howard on your lowest weight in years. Not to shabby!
I like today's quote. I have been thinking a lot about the current state of society. There are a lot of folks who seem to actively seek to see the negative side of any situation. I don't want to be one of those people. Instead, I want to be someone who can usually see the good side of things, or give people the benefit of the doubt and not jump immediately to the negative conclusion. It feels like many in our society are looking for the opportunity to be offended. If you look to be offended, you'll always find an opportunity (even if it was unintentional).
Regardless, this also reminds me of a recent LTL that was posted (though to be fair, it could have been a few months ago at this point). It was to find something to praise yourself about. I really liked that. It was a good exercise.
So, I just have to get through another full day and then it's Shabbat! I'll still plan to be generally careful in my intake, but there will be some "treats" involved! Ha ha!1 -
Today is day 26 of the omer. Today's quote from Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks:
“What you think of as your greatest weakness can become, if you wrestle with it, your greatest strength.”
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I managed to pull the last "weekday" into the win column yesterday! That makes for a solid end of the week leading into Shabbat. I haven't had a string of days where I've fully followed my plan in a long time. It feels pretty good, actually!
Plus, my "reward" was a 2 pound weight-loss this week. To be honest, I don't think that's all "actual" weight...I think some of it is the usual random fluctuations (hydration, etc.). Nevertheless, I'll take it!
I'll be off-line for Shabbat and back on Sunday. My plan for this period is to stick to single appropriate portions, only ONE dessert (each) at dinner tonight and at lunch tomorrow (and maybe even cut it in half it it's a generous dessert), mostly unlimited wine intake (we have our first lunch-guests tomorrow), but no snacks in-between meals. I imagine I'll have some wine or bourbon on Saturday night too (just to finish off some open bottles).
I hope everyone else is doing well on the challenge.
Finally, again, I really like today's quote posted above. I have a lot of weaknesses, but I want to think about how they might become my greatest strengths. Thoughts about your own personal weaknesses that you could turn into strengths?0 -
Was up 1.6# this AM. Normal fluctuations. Was within both SPs and cal.0
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Sorry I've been MIA. Been busy and tired, a rough combo. As @steve0mania noted, hard to be too specific, but here goes with what I remember. I have taken time to consider my days, and that has been really helpful!
Been OP, getting 🔵s, all but Thursday. This is the 3rd Thurs that I've eaten well over 🔵 range. On the bright side, I've accurately tracked it, but still ... FYI Thurs is WI day 🤷🏼♀️. This is a new issue. The 1st week it was a Krispy Kreme that derailed me. Can't remember what it was last week, but resisted the donut, had Bfast out with friends and made pretty good choices, then ran errands and stopped for a blackberry hand pie 17 SP 🤦🏼♀️. This week, I will have a pretracked meal plan. Btw, the only reason I realized this new issue is because I've taken the time to reflect on my day.
Exercise has been spotty. I'm working on forming some habits to help with this. Making some progress.
Lunch going on and on has been an issue as well as afternoon snacking. I've tried a new approach. After lunch, I have dessert, usually a fruit. And snacks aren't eaten standing in front of the snack cupboard. I make a plate with a manageable amount of food. So far it's working.
I'm loving the quotes at the top of your posts @steve0mania . They make me think! I'm not sure about the latest,
“What you think of as your greatest weakness can become, if you wrestle with it, your greatest strength", but I'm wrestling with it 🙂
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Saturday was day 27 of the Omer. The quote from Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks for Saturday was:
"Clear rules and proper discipline help to establish, maintain, and expand order for more fulfilled children, families, and society. Love is not enough. Relationships need rules."
Today is day 28 of the Omer. Today's quote from Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks:
"If you want to change lives, speak to people's feelings, not just their minds."
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Shabbat (Friday night through Saturday night) went mostly as planned, with minor exceptions. Friday night dinner was spot-on, but as noted, I had planned a (one single) dessert, plenty of wine, and (I may have forgotten to mention) a "Shabbat beer" (actually two). Before we shut off phones for Shabbat, I like to make my last phone calls to kids and friends while sitting peacefully and enjoying a beer. I have otherwise mostly given up beer. It's gotten really hard to manage the calories, so that Shabbat beer is a special treat. In a perfect world I'd limit it to one, but what can I say, it's an imperfect world! Ha ha.
Saturday lunch was great. We had friends (all fully vaccinated) over for the first time. That meant a more extensive meal, and I ate a bit more than I planned (I usually skip the fish course, but I didn't want to serve guests and not take the same food...it felt a bit weird to do that). Again, plenty of wine, one single dessert (if you don't count the fruit that went with the slice of carrot cake).
The last thing that was a little unplanned was the "third meal." We have a "third meal" on Shabbat (to qualify as a "meal," there has to be bread; we count Friday dinner as meal 1, and Saturday lunch as meal 2, we don't count Saturday breakfast). Our third meal included an unplanned cookie (but no alcohol). It wasn't the end of the world, but I really didn't "need" a cookie!
Finally, we watched some TV at night and worked our way towards finishing up the leftover wine from the day. Actually, there's still a bit more floating around, but I don't plan to partake of it tonight.
So, today it's back to my regular weekday plan and some white-knuckling to avoid turning Sunday into an extension of Saturday!
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linmueller wrote: »I'm loving the quotes at the top of your posts @steve0mania . They make me think! I'm not sure about the latest, “What you think of as your greatest weakness can become, if you wrestle with it, your greatest strength", but I'm wrestling with it 🙂
Thanks for saying that Lin!
I came up with a couple of examples for myself.
1) I am very inflexible. For example, if I have plans with someone, it makes me really cranky when those plans change, particularly at the last minute. I have often wished that I was better at "going with the flow." However, this same "rigidity" gives me a strong ability to stick with something, even something challenging. I hate to give up! This works well for weight-management, right, because it means that I'm willing to bang my head into a wall to stick with it, even if it's not convenient or easy.
2) I don't pay strong attention to details. I'm more of a "gist" person. I enjoy seeing the big picture, but digging into the weeds on details is often boring to me (except when one really needs the details to understand the big picture). This weakness allows me to readily delegate activities to others. In my work I serve as a leader. I am able to delegate responsibilities quite easily, because I'd rather let others think about the tactical details of how we carry out specific aspects of our strategy. This lets others have a sense of ownership and autonomy, and it tends to grow new leaders in our organization.
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Yesterday went kinda as expected. We had a noon time reception at church for some menbers of our relogious fraternity, and I came out prettywell unscathed. Had about 700 cal. (17 SPs). Ended up at 1960 cal. (36 SPs)which was 180 cal. over MY daily cal. goal. Actually, too much evening snacking as usual.
I did "eye" the table before choosing. At the dessert table I chose carefully. Pretty much stuck with my plan, which I seldom do.
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Congrats @Al_Howard ! Sounds you won over those pesky desserts! 🎉
And thanks for the examples @steve0mania . You reminded me of one I've come to terms with in the recent years. I am stubborn! Like really stubborn! This less than lovely trait is an asset when someone tries to pressure me to eat something that doesn't fit into my program. I'm thinking I need to apply this stubbornness to the healthy habits I desire to establish.1 -
Yesterday I did well sticking to my plan. Even at the lake I got a 🔵. Helped that I made a small batch of popcorn twice (and shared). Today was a little tougher. Lunch was more like dinner, so I snacked on cheese and crackers. And neither meal was low point, so used lots of weeklies. I have one left with Thurs being my reset day. I could have chosen a better snack, but didn't have a healthy snack I could easily share with our kids/dinner guests. In hindsight, not really seeing a good alternative, so wouldn't do much different. I paid attention to portions and tracked/owned it. This is new! I'm seeing progress!
My plan for the next 3 days is to stay w/in my dailies and get a good plan in place for the infamous Thurs WI day where I've been overindulging. Onward.0 -
One week reached all goals. I particularly try to keep saturated fats, added sugars, and salt intake below American Heart Association upper limits.0
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Today is day 289of the Omer. Today's quote from Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks:
“In life, ask not, ‘what can I gain?’ but ‘what can I give?’ Be a blessing to others and you will find that life has been a blessing to you.”
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I managed to eek out a "win" yesterday, even though I kept thinking how nice it would be to sit outside and have a beer or two! We did go for a walk, but I managed to stick with my plan. One thing that did help is that I had an 8 pm class, so I was out of the house during the "lull" time where I often snacked/drank from boredom more than anything else.
I'm pleased that everyone seems to be having some success with sticking to their plans (even if it's imperfect...after all, we're all imperfect, right?).
More of the same today, including an 8 pm class that will help me get through the evening lull.1 -
✔️in
As I mentioned in another thread, I've noticed "the sigh" of satisfaction these last couple weeks (I've been more mindful), but haven't listened, so today I tried a new approach. I greatly reduced my portions. For breakfast and lunch, I ate 1/2 of what I planned. Dinner was 1 keto friendly bun (1st time buying and I can't recommend them, even for just 1 SP) w/turkey, 1/4 oz swiss cheese, and turkey, w/ less than a tsp of butter to grill the bun. "Dessert" was 1 SP of pumpkin seeds and 1 SP of almonds w/dk choc, sea salt and turbinado sugar. In the end, thanks to much white knuckling and irritated admissions of not really being hungry therefore avoiding unnecessary snacking, I have 4 DPs left to bring my weeklies to 5.
AND I used the stacking to accomplish all 5 of my daily exercise goals for the 1st time in a while! I'd developed a habit to get 1 done and just continued on with the other 3 (the 5th is an hourly step goal). Full disclosure, part of what kept me going is knowing I was going to post here about my food accomplishment and I wanted to be able to include exercise in the daily success report. Whatever it takes to motivate me I guess, I'll take it! 🤷🏼♀️
I also was thinking about today's quote, and thought DH was the only person I'd see, so ... I did a load of laundry I knew he'd appreciate and ran an errand on his lunch hour that he wanted help with. Then, I ended up seeing my beautician unexpectedly for a quick trim and made sure to ask her how her day was. It was not good. She appreciated me listening to her sad news from her 1st client of the day, to her processing the conversation they had, and to her conclusion about the good that came her time with the client. It was an amazing day!0 -
Today is day 30 of the Omer. Today's quote from Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks:
“Search for meaning and you will discover strength, fulfilment and peace.”
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Yesterday was the easiest day I've had in a while, but it's because my out-of-the-house 8 pm class ended up running until 10 pm, so I had no time to even think about snacking! By the time I got home, I was tired and ready to head to bed. A great arrow for the quiver, so to speak: distraction!
Regarding the "sigh," I don't think I've ever noticed it. *sigh* ha ha
Work has been crazy busy, so it's off to try to get some stuff done today.1 -
Good day yesterday. Weight same as last Tuesday.
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Today, Tues, was stellar!
Exercise was 4/5. Was going to do the 5th but DH, well, doesn't really matter. I can avoid this by getting it done earlier in the day while he's working.
Diet was great. I didn't eat until 2:30 because I was trying to win a diet bet. I did not! BUT I did manage not to over eat, (portions or grazing), having a healthy lunch and dinner. That's a more important win for me right now! Winning, and not even having to white knuckle it. I'm getting beyond optimistic! I'm on a roll! Oh, and 9 DPs left.
Mindset is on track
Sleep has been great!
@steve0mania , I'm so glad you took the time to figure out what the other thread wasn't giving you. It was great for me when I was rolling along, but wasn't enough to get me back on track. Apparently I need daily accountability.
Also, the timing could not be better! We're going to Vegas in a few weeks and this motivates me to make good choices in the condo food so going out doesn't destroy my diet. And I'm committing to track while I'm gone.
I know I've said it before, but I want goal!0 -
Good week for me down a pound at WW weigh in! thats two weeks in a row of losses yay me. Trying to figure out how I am going to handle the summer as we will be leaving an 5/14 for a 3 month cross country RV trip. My experience in the past has been that I can do OK thanks to the ability to do a lot of our own cooking in the RV, but pre-covid I was able to visit WW centers wherever we were and just walk in for a meeting and weigh in. As far as I know all WW centers require reservations for meeting attendance right now and thats an extra layer of complexity. I have been researching the virtual meetings, the challenge I think is in choosing a virtual leader. Anybody got any reccomendations for one they have tried and liked?0
