5 Pound a Month February 2010 Challenge

phyljen

Hi everyone,
It's Friday and I have been pretty good to not weight myself every day partly because "the relatives" borrowed my scales and have not brought them back. But I weighed in on my friends scale today and i was happy to see another pound GONE! I am so happy. Oh and by the way WELCOME to all these that have just joined this group. It is the BEST! I love reading and checking in with everyone every day and hearing how everyone is getting along. All the tips and suggestions and stories are most welcome and motivating to me. so here goes:
Starting weight in Jan: 159
Feb. 1 - 156
Feb. 5 - 154
Feb. 12- 153
Today Feb. 19- 152
Goal by the end of Month - 150 and I CAN'T WAIT TO SEE THE 140's!!!!
Can't wait to hear all about everyone else weigh in this week. Sometimes I think WHY only one pound, but then again I think at least it is going down and that is the right direction. I think the healthy new life style is paying off and I feel great. In all my dieting days I have never know about this eating your exercise calories and at first I was like "NO WAY" that will never work but it seems to really work and I love eating them calories up after I have a good work out. My additional goal this week is to drink a cup or two more water than I have before. that will put me at about 10 cups a day instead of 8.

pbenison

Good Morning,

Thought I would go ahead and post before I head out the door to work.

Today's weight: 150.4 which is a loss of 1.1 lbs since last week. Not bad considering I had gained since becoming sick. Now if I can just get below the 149.3 I was on Feb. 1st, I would be a happy camper!! I am feeling so much better, which I think is reflected in the weight loss. While ill, I was also aware of the foods I was consuming on an unconscious level, even when I wasn't logging them into my diary. I found myself making smart choices.

I am observing Lent, which also helps to keep me focused. As a rule, I try not to use dieting as a penance, like my priest says, we have Weight Watchers for that,! But as I continue through this time, I try to stay aware of keeping my body healthy.

Hope everyone has a great weekend,

Pam

TCASMEY

Hello all!

Friday February 5 weight 179
Friday February 12 weight 178.4
Friday February 19 weight 177.4 Lost 1 pound!:drinker:

TCASMEY

Good Morning,

Thought I would go ahead and post before I head out the door to work.

Today's weight: 150.4 which is a loss of 1.1 lbs since last week. Not bad considering I had gained since becoming sick. Now if I can just get below the 149.3 I was on Feb. 1st, I would be a happy camper!! I am feeling so much better, which I think is reflected in the weight loss. While ill, I was also aware of the foods I was consuming on an unconscious level, even when I wasn't logging them into my diary. I found myself making smart choices.

I am observing Lent, which also helps to keep me focused. As a rule, I try not to use dieting as a penance, like my priest says, we have Weight Watchers for that,! But as I continue through this time, I try to stay aware of keeping my body healthy.

Hope everyone has a great weekend,

Pam

Way to go Pam. I always feel great with any loss. Keep up the great work!

TCASMEY

Hi everyone,
It's Friday and I have been pretty good to not weight myself every day partly because "the relatives" borrowed my scales and have not brought them back. But I weighed in on my friends scale today and i was happy to see another pound GONE! I am so happy. Oh and by the way WELCOME to all these that have just joined this group. It is the BEST! I love reading and checking in with everyone every day and hearing how everyone is getting along. All the tips and suggestions and stories are most welcome and motivating to me. so here goes:
Starting weight in Jan: 159
Feb. 1 - 156
Feb. 5 - 154
Feb. 12- 153
Today Feb. 19- 152
Goal by the end of Month - 150 and I CAN'T WAIT TO SEE THE 140's!!!!
Can't wait to hear all about everyone else weigh in this week. Sometimes I think WHY only one pound, but then again I think at least it is going down and that is the right direction. I think the healthy new life style is paying off and I feel great. In all my dieting days I have never know about this eating your exercise calories and at first I was like "NO WAY" that will never work but it seems to really work and I love eating them calories up after I have a good work out. My additional goal this week is to drink a cup or two more water than I have before. that will put me at about 10 cups a day instead of 8.

Keep up the awesome work slow and steady wins the race!

phyljen

Good for you! I can't wait until my ticker says lost 25 pounds like yours does. that must make you feel so proud. Phyljen

Jennplus2

:sad: 1 lb gain


2/1: 153
2/5: 151
2/12: 149
2/19: 150


Why can't I stay under 150! I know why, really, because I snack after dinner! I had so much cheesy garlic bread last night, even though I knew today was the day to face the scale. But at least I logged it, butter and all. I did do a hard workout last night and plan to stay good this weekend. And it was Valentines day on top of a 4 day weekend. So I guess it could have been worse.
Maybe it is because it was such a high sodium day. Lets hope.
Have a great weekend, and congrats to all who lost!

pbenison

:sad: 1 lb gain


2/1: 153
2/5: 151
2/12: 149
2/19: 150


Why can't I stay under 150! I know why, really, because I snack after dinner! I had so much cheesy garlic bread last night, even though I knew today was the day to face the scale. But at least I logged it, butter and all. I did do a hard workout last night and plan to stay good this weekend. And it was Valentines day on top of a 4 day weekend. So I guess it could have been worse.
Maybe it is because it was such a high sodium day. Lets hope.
Have a great weekend, and congrats to all who lost!

Oh Girl, I feel your pain! I am trying to hard to stay below 150 lbs.! I see it on the scale and before I can get really excited, I gain it back. Okay. What are we going to do about this? I am at 150 also. Let's work on this together this week...we can do it. One meal at a time, one ounce at a time. You in??!

lreed

Jan 1st 216.7
Feb 1st 211.8
CW 2-19 207.7
Mar 1st 206.8
Woo Hoo! Doing Good! Today however I went over on my calories, but that is o.k.! I'll get back to it tomorrow.

lreed

Hi everyone,
It's Friday and I have been pretty good to not weight myself every day partly because "the relatives" borrowed my scales and have not brought them back. But I weighed in on my friends scale today and i was happy to see another pound GONE! I am so happy. Oh and by the way WELCOME to all these that have just joined this group. It is the BEST! I love reading and checking in with everyone every day and hearing how everyone is getting along. All the tips and suggestions and stories are most welcome and motivating to me. so here goes:
Starting weight in Jan: 159
Feb. 1 - 156
Feb. 5 - 154
Feb. 12- 153
Today Feb. 19- 152
Goal by the end of Month - 150 and I CAN'T WAIT TO SEE THE 140's!!!!
Can't wait to hear all about everyone else weigh in this week. Sometimes I think WHY only one pound, but then again I think at least it is going down and that is the right direction. I think the healthy new life style is paying off and I feel great. In all my dieting days I have never know about this eating your exercise calories and at first I was like "NO WAY" that will never work but it seems to really work and I love eating them calories up after I have a good work out. My additional goal this week is to drink a cup or two more water than I have before. that will put me at about 10 cups a day instead of 8.

Good job! a pound is a pound, and a pound lost is better than a pound gained. You are getting SO close the the 140's! That's so FABULOUS I have been doing the 10-12 glasses of water a day, I think it helps! keep that water with you ALL the time! :flowerforyou:

lreed

Hello all!

Friday February 5 weight 179
Friday February 12 weight 178.4
Friday February 19 weight 177.4 Lost 1 pound!:drinker:

WOO HOO!! Congrats!:happy:

Jennplus2

:sad: 1 lb gain


2/1: 153
2/5: 151
2/12: 149
2/19: 150


Why can't I stay under 150! I know why, really, because I snack after dinner! I had so much cheesy garlic bread last night, even though I knew today was the day to face the scale. But at least I logged it, butter and all. I did do a hard workout last night and plan to stay good this weekend. And it was Valentines day on top of a 4 day weekend. So I guess it could have been worse.
Maybe it is because it was such a high sodium day. Lets hope.
Have a great weekend, and congrats to all who lost!

Oh Girl, I feel your pain! I am trying to hard to stay below 150 lbs.! I see it on the scale and before I can get really excited, I gain it back. Okay. What are we going to do about this? I am at 150 also. Let's work on this together this week...we can do it. One meal at a time, one ounce at a time. You in??!

Oh yes I'm in! I did my Curves workout today on my lunch, Biggest Loser Yoga DVD when I got home and I think I am under calories today. I can't snack I can't snack! I'll check in with you in the morning :bigsmile: Great Idea!!!

phyljen

Way to go!! Congratulations. Isn't it great to see those numbers heading in the down ward direction! I keep telling myself, I'M GOING DOWN!!!! I self talk a lot and I think it helps. Rather than beat myself up it is better to tell myself I can do it. With everyones help I can too. Phyljen

phyljen

Jenn, I am sure you will lose this coming week. I will be cheering your you and putting out the DON'T eat night snacks ENERGY! Does that make any sense at all? Anyway... I will be thinking of you eating healthy good for you snacks at night when you get those urges. Have some carrot sticks, or celery or cukes all ready to grab when you want to snack. right now the carrots in Cairo are so sweet and just like candy. I love snacking on carrots. I wish we had those baby carrots here but we don't so I just peel regular carrots, cut them up and have them handy all the time.
It is 8:30 am and I have been out for my morning run. Oh I feel good. I ran for 65 minutes and instead of just a slow jog, I would do a little sprint for abut 30 or 40 seconds after every 5 minutes. I hope that will shake up the routine to make a difference. I read about doing that in a running blog. we'll see if it helps. I also added 5 minutes to the run. I have already had 5 cups of water and it is still not even 9 in the morning. I am going to be visiting the wash room a lot today. LOL
well keep you head up and think POSITIVE. You can do it. I know you can. Phyljen

TCASMEY

Jenn

I am so proud to see you working out! Keep pushing yourself and soon the scale will go where you want it to go. Its about getting healthy and keeping your body moving is an important part of that process. As long as you burn more than you put it it will get the scale moving.:flowerforyou:

izzypup

Sorry i missed putting in my weight yesterday...
Feb 5 186
Feb 12 185
Feb 19 182

I have really been trying to drink the water and eat allllll my calories! Very happy.... I think that i can make to the 181 by the 27th. I really want to be down 11 more lbs by the end of April for the cruise.
Good luck on everyones losses!
Sandy

siobhannestor

Sorry I haven't been around much this week - it's been a hard week, not only work but adjusting to the fibroid news, etc. I am normally a pretty chirpy person, but have been feeling down (seeing recent photos of myself that I had to edit / process for a website for work didn't help). I have not been doing well at food, sleep, or working out this week. Anyway, was completely expecting to see a weight gain, but when got on the scale this morning (sorry - it is hard for me to weigh in on Fridays), had lost .5 pounds! :noway:

So I don't know what's going on, but...

February 1 = 192.5
February 13 - 191
February 20 - 190.5

I have no illusions - I would be shocked if I lose 5 pounds this month, but at least the scale is moving in the right direction!

Congrats to all who lost weight this week, and thanks to all of my friends on this board.

Jennplus2

Siobhannestor my heart goes out to you. Nice to see the scale go down even a little bit IMO also, so good job on that! I am the same way about food and exercise when I get blue, so try not to be hard on yourself. It is a lot to take in and you need some adjusting time. Everyday is a new day, tomorrow is only getting closer and looking better and better. :flowerforyou:
Hug Hug

ps I did miss seeing your posts.

Jennplus2

Jenn, I am sure you will lose this coming week. I will be cheering your you and putting out the DON'T eat night snacks ENERGY! Does that make any sense at all? Anyway... I will be thinking of you eating healthy good for you snacks at night when you get those urges. Have some carrot sticks, or celery or cukes all ready to grab when you want to snack. right now the carrots in Cairo are so sweet and just like candy. I love snacking on carrots. I wish we had those baby carrots here but we don't so I just peel regular carrots, cut them up and have them handy all the time.
It is 8:30 am and I have been out for my morning run. Oh I feel good. I ran for 65 minutes and instead of just a slow jog, I would do a little sprint for abut 30 or 40 seconds after every 5 minutes. I hope that will shake up the routine to make a difference. I read about doing that in a running blog. we'll see if it helps. I also added 5 minutes to the run. I have already had 5 cups of water and it is still not even 9 in the morning. I am going to be visiting the wash room a lot today. LOL
well keep you head up and think POSITIVE. You can do it. I know you can. Phyljen

Thank you so much! I can feel the cheering energy today already. It really helps to know I have people thinking about me. Helps me stay focused.
As a non-runner WOW! I am so inspired to try a jog! Way to go. :bigsmile:

Jennplus2

Jenn

I am so proud to see you working out! Keep pushing yourself and soon the scale will go where you want it to go. Its about getting healthy and keeping your body moving is an important part of that process. As long as you burn more than you put it it will get the scale moving.:flowerforyou:

Thank you. That is so true. I think I will try to plug in calories before I eat so I can make sure I really want it. That means HOW much more exercise tonight?!?! I also put a "How to Stop a Craving" list in the kitchen. :laugh:
I might weigh on Monday. :embarassed:

TCASMEY

Sorry i missed putting in my weight yesterday...
Feb 5 186
Feb 12 185
Feb 19 182

I have really been trying to drink the water and eat allllll my calories! Very happy.... I think that i can make to the 181 by the 27th. I really want to be down 11 more lbs by the end of April for the cruise.
Good luck on everyones losses!
Sandy

3 pounds down....that is fantastic. Keep up the good work!

izzypup

.
Thank you. That is so true. I think I will try to plug in calories before I eat so I can make sure I really want it. That means HOW much more exercise tonight?!?! I also put a "How to Stop a Craving" list in the kitchen. :laugh:
I might weigh on Monday. :embarassed:
[/quote]

Hey share the stop craving list with the rest of us. :laugh: Some people say not to eat 3 hours before bed but i can't do that. I have also read a few things lately that said this is not true. You can eat, just litely and smartly. No complex sugars or carbs. Makes sense. Usually eat an apple or even 1 sugar free pudding. The ppuddings are only 60 calories. Probably not the best thing but they take away the crave. You are doing great. Keep up the good work.
TCASMEY - Thank you. It is always such a struggle as we all on here know. I usually only loose 1 lb a week but i have really been concentrating on drinking that water!!!!
Sandy

TCASMEY

I just finished reading a book by Dr. Huzeinga (not sure about the spelling on that: he is the Dr. from the Biggest Loser) but he talks about thinking about weight loss in terms of percentages lost. Every week you should aim to lose between 1-2% of your body weight, but he also wants you to work out 2 or more hours per day -6 days a week and do weight lifting 2-3 times per week. The Book is called WHERE DID ALL THE FAT GO? I have tried to push my exercise up to the 2 hours per day and see what will happen. I failed on Friday and Saturday and only got in 1.5 hours of exercise today, but I did burn over 1000 calories. I found the book very interesting and would recommend it. It gives you hope, unlike some diet books that make you feel if you do not eat exactly like we say you will not lose weight. I give it 2 thumbs up....that is because I only have 2 thumbs.

Time to eat and then watch USA vs Canada in hockey. GO USA!!!

phyljen

Sandy,
Where are you going on your cruise? I love cruising. I have only gone on about 4 altogether but loved them all. Went to Mexico, Malaysia, Alaska, and on a Nile cruise in Egypt. I'd love to go on a cruise to Norway some time. Good luck on the 11 pound goal that you ahve set before you travel. :laugh: phyljen

izzypup

Sandy,
Where are you going on your cruise? I love cruising. I have only gone on about 4 altogether but loved them all. Went to Mexico, Malaysia, Alaska, and on a Nile cruise in Egypt. I'd love to go on a cruise to Norway some time. Good luck on the 11 pound goal that you ahve set before you travel. :laugh: phyljen

It is my first cruise... FUN!!! We are going to St. Marteen, St. Thomas, Bahamas, Turks... 7 days of relaxing and fun.... I can't wait!
Have a good day everyone!!!!
Sandy

Jennplus2

Hello everyone! I am happy to say I did so great this weekend, I lost my pound! I really worked hard for it, exercised 2 times Friday, 2 Saturday, and 3 Sunday! I eat really healthy low calorie meals and snacks and didn't eat my exercise calories! I feel so ready to have a good week! Even made a menu plan and went shopping for the things I will need so I will be ready to cook healthy meals for my family!
My daughter told me last night that she likes that I am in the kitchen "all the time" now because we get to eat more. Ha ha ha
I don't know what that is about really. Maybe she likes the food more?? We ate before, just started cooking more, and eating/serving healthier food. Nice that she has noticed that I have been in the kitchen cooking a lot though. :laugh:


Sandy-
I would love to send you the stop cravings check list. It's long to type out here but I will message you. Anyone else that wants it just let me know. It has really been working for me, at least for the last few days that I have had it. I have also found that I really want a little treat every night, like your pudding. After my kids are in dream land and once I am done with my PM yoga workout DVD, while my honey eats and eats and eats. (Kinda funny, he tells me if I am "out of form" while he eats chips and cookies! :grumble:) I would try so hard not to eat my treat and end up snacking on everything! (most of which I really didn't want anyway) Instead, this weekend, I worked out hard, eat well, and had my treat of frozen yogurt before bed. If I eat what I want (really not that bad calorie wise) I don't end up eating the whole house! Before I was telling myself to wait until the one day I would allow myself and end up blowing my whole day. If I have the extra calories why not eat my treat?

TCASMEY-
Sounds like a great book. After I finish the current book I am reading about how to be a better mommy (Happiest Toddler on the Block) I will give it a try! I have two thumbs also! :laugh:
Yay on the US Hockey team winning! I was watching while on the elliptical. :bigsmile:

phyljen

I have a question for all you smarty pants people...( that was a joke by the way) I am not making fun of anyone. I just have a questions that I need answered from someone smarter than me. LOL
What I am not understanding is... sometimes people say they do extra exercise and don't eat the calories and they lose weight. Others say you have to eat your exercise calories or you won't lose weight. When I log in my food and exercise each day, when I am lose on calories it always say if every day was like today I would be X amount of pounds in 5 weeks. Usually if I have a low calorie day the number is much lower than if I ate all my calories for that day. So I am just getting confused about this whole calorie and eating exercise calories or doing extra exercises and all. Some people say if you do extra exercises and don't eat the food then your body thinks it is starving and burns the muscle rather the fat and that it is bad for you. So as you can see I need all the explanations that I can get so I do this right. I don't want to exercise and do more exercise and eat low if I am ruining my whole plan. Thanks to who ever reply's to this. I just need clarification. and I know everyone is different and has a different rate of metabolism and all so maybe it just depends on your make up??? I don't know. Phyljen:indifferent: :bigsmile: :sick: :noway: :

TCASMEY

I have a question for all you smarty pants people...( that was a joke by the way) I am not making fun of anyone. I just have a questions that I need answered from someone smarter than me. LOL
What I am not understanding is... sometimes people say they do extra exercise and don't eat the calories and they lose weight. Others say you have to eat your exercise calories or you won't lose weight. When I log in my food and exercise each day, when I am lose on calories it always say if every day was like today I would be X amount of pounds in 5 weeks. Usually if I have a low calorie day the number is much lower than if I ate all my calories for that day. So I am just getting confused about this whole calorie and eating exercise calories or doing extra exercises and all. Some people say if you do extra exercises and don't eat the food then your body thinks it is starving and burns the muscle rather the fat and that it is bad for you. So as you can see I need all the explanations that I can get so I do this right. I don't want to exercise and do more exercise and eat low if I am ruining my whole plan. Thanks to who ever reply's to this. I just need clarification. and I know everyone is different and has a different rate of metabolism and all so maybe it just depends on your make up??? I don't know. Phyljen:indifferent: :bigsmile: :sick: :noway: :

From my understanding to go into starvation mode you need to be at a very low calorie intake....under 1000 calories per day, and be there for some time. To eat or not eat your calories is a debate that happens at this website from time to time. From my understanding MFP has already set you calories low enough for you to lose your goal weight per week (usually 1-2 pounds) when you exercise you are creating a bigger calorie loss and can and will lose weight faster. Some people when they exercise get hungrier and need to eat those calories back, (or at least some of them) some people can exercise and not get hungrier.

I just read a book called WHERE DID ALL THE FAT GO? by Dr. Huizenga (the Biggest Loser doctor) In it he talks about the diet of the losers and the workouts. The women were eating 1200-1800 calories a day (this was based on a whole bunch of data about the person) and then they exercised 2-4 hours or more every day burning well over 1000 calories per day and they never went into starvation mode. So I believe if you are eating your calories set by MFP it would be pretty hard for your body to go into starvation mode. The body will give the start burning fat and muscle to make up for calorie deficits. That is why when losing weight exercise is so important because we really truly only want to burn fat. Losing muscle and bone mass during weight loss can happen but if you are eating well and getting cardio and resistance training you should lose mostly fat and gain muscle. And dont worry it is really hard for a woman to bulk up like a weight lifter.

All that being said some days I eat some of my exercise calories and some days I do not. I am trying the diet and exercise in the book above so I am buring well over 1000 calories per day. Eating an extra 1000 calories per day is pretty hard for me.

Hopefully this helps a little. :flowerforyou:

Terri

Jennplus2

Phyljen-

I agree with Terri. I believe if you are eating HEALTHY calories and you stay at about 1200 calories per day, it would be pretty hard for your body to go into starvation mode using the MFP plan. But when you eat lower calories of *junk food only* and don't get the healthy calories your body needs to live OR are eating healthy but only 500-600 per day and doing lots of exercise (more than you are eating... example: eating 600 - 1400 exercise cals you don't eat= -800) that is when you can go into starvation mode.

If I know that I will go out to lunch tomorrow and will have a high calorie day, I might not eat my exercise calories. Or if I am planning a treat later in the week and I wont be able to get exercise that day I might "save up" some exercise calories from the rest of the week to make up for the day I go over on my calories. Just try to have the week balance out, met calories Mon, Tues, under calories Wed, over calories Thurs, met calories Fri, Sat, Sun.
Hope this helps! :flowerforyou:

phyljen

Jenn and Terri,
Thanks I knew I could count on you to give me an answer to my "burning" question. You are my super stars. and look at how much weight you have both lost. SO YOU know all the TRICKS and TIPS. SO THANK YOU THANK YOU. It does make sense what you both explained and so I will keep doing as I am doing and not worry that I am doing it wrong. I have changed my eating habits A LOT in the past 6-7 weeks and I feel so GOOD. I am drinking more water this week too and I am wondering how that will affect my weight on Friday when I weigh in. I hope it is washing out some of the weight. I don't mind flushing it away!!!

Just got back from a most interesting talk given by three professors of ancient Egypt. they are here from the states and work on a DIG out in the desert. One talked about ancient fabrics, one ancient textiles, and one showed us the pyramid that they have uncovered and talked all about the inscriptions on the walls of the pyramid. So very interesting. I do live in a fascinating land. And there are sure some smart people around that study and dig up things all the time and enjoy sharing their finds with others. OH YES, the reason I was starting to say that is because they had some really yummy fattening refreshments and also a few healthy things and I chose a piece of raw broccoli and some yellow peppers rather than some gooey marshmallow brownies and chocolate chip cookies. So you should be proud of me. I WAS! Now I can go to bed and not feel guilty.. I did eat two cups of pop corn though at the faculty meeting after school. I can never pass p pop corn. It is one of my favorite snacks of all time.
o.k. three more days till weigh in on Friday. Time is passing fast this week. Have a couple more good days and then a fantastic week end. Phyljen