Good first week! Long journey ahead.

hittrain
hittrain Posts: 38 Member
Last year I lost 45 on MFP but put it back on. Starting at 6'5" 390.6, I lost 6.5 pounds the first week. Glad I started fast but need to stay focused and maintain balance. I'm also looking for friends along the way. Let's keep the train rolling!

Jon

Replies

  • Dvdo
    Dvdo Posts: 1 Member
    I'm with you, Jon! 12-14 years ago my doc said "I see your gaining about 5 pounds a year - over ten years... Do the math." I laughed at the time - but now, at 5'4" and 175' I'm wishing that I had listened. I agree that this is going to be a long haul - if I don't change the way I use food, I won't have much chance of losing the extra and keeping it off. A little mutual encouragement sounds great.
  • hittrain
    hittrain Posts: 38 Member
    Another good week! Down another 4.8 this week for 11.3 lbs in two weeks. Saturday's are not good days; another bad day of drinking and late night snacking. Plus I'm traveling this week. Always hard when the routine is broken. Hoping for will power and good food choices on the road.
  • Keesie2016
    Keesie2016 Posts: 2 Member
    I also find weekend exxxxremely difficult, starting Friday night. The Nutrition tab is so useful, told me eg that I am steering to fatty and sugary foods and hardly eat any potassium - so bananas and avocados it is !!!
  • hittrain
    hittrain Posts: 38 Member
    In some ways, the weekends are easier. We make peanut butter, can try some new recipes and I have time to cook more so than during the week. The problem is at night when we get together with friends or go out. Drinks are the worst. But yet so tasty! :).
  • hittrain
    hittrain Posts: 38 Member
    The hardest part of this journey for me is when I knew I blew a day but couldn't totally count the "damage." then I have to wait until Saturday (my weigh in day) to see how much damage I did. This week I travelled for two days; the first day I was good; one beer and a sensible dinner with 12,000+ steps. the next day I did ok until I met my cousin for dinner and drinks. I ended up having a grilled chicken sandwich but, after a few drinks, had a bunch of French fries and many tasty beverages. I still had 15,000+ steps and the rest of the week has been good but I'm frustrated with my weakness in the French fries and losing count of the beers.

    At the end of the day, I need to accept imperfection in the process and do my best going forward.

    Jon
  • hittrain
    hittrain Posts: 38 Member
    Three weeks in and I'm happy with this weeks number. I was down another 5.1 pounds. That's a total of 16.4 in three weeks. I know it's going to get harder but after my bad day Tuesday, I'm happy to have a decent loss this week. Looking to keep it going next week. The biggest challenge is to not get bored and find a way to get some exercise in. Im aiming for two workouts this week. I really think my two days of a lot of walking saved me; with some exercise and a good week, I should be able to keep the losses coming. I still have over 100 pounds to lose, I can't be satisfied with early success
  • hittrain
    hittrain Posts: 38 Member
    A little late checking in this week. A standard week without much exercise, but I ate well and ended up losing another 3.9 pounds. That's a total of 20.3 in four weeks. While I'm really happy it's going well, I'm still mad that I was down 43 last year and let it get away from me. Once I get 44 down, I'll feel like I'm really "progressing."

    This weekend, I started working out; walking a couple miles a day and lifting some weights. I haven't picked up a weight in 4-5 years so I took it easy and feel pretty good. I hope to get some walking in everyday to see where my weight goes with light exercise daily. I remain focused on my goal of 340-350 by March 23rd. 20.3 down, 104.7 to go =).
  • WendyLaubach
    WendyLaubach Posts: 518 Member
    I remember watching a Sam Kinison routine a long time ago about wives and girlfriends gaining "five to seven pounds a year." I thought that number sounded too true to be funny. I'm 59 now and still able to do the math! But now the number is "losing ten pounds a month as long as it takes." Down 37 pounds since November 2015.
  • hittrain
    hittrain Posts: 38 Member
    Well, the levelling off has started and that's ok with me. I lost another 2.4 pounds this week. It was a bit of a startling slow down from the 5 pound a week average for the first month but I knew it was coming. The good news is that I got some cardio in 6 out of 7 days and even lifted some weights for the first time in years. I'm dedicated to the new lifestyle I'm falling into and I know that I'll make my goal (125 lbs). I just need to adjust my expectations.
  • hittrain
    hittrain Posts: 38 Member
    This week has really made clear how important it is to adapt, commit, and embrace a new lifestyle during this journey. I really am focused on losing weight and reaching a goal (265). Firstly, because I want to be healthier and not only be around for, but be an active participant in my Son and Daughter's lives. Also, I feel better when I am healthier and would like to be an "athlete" again (more of a weekend warrior, but active in the sports I like).

    Where I'm starting to grow and learn is that in order to accomplish those large goals, I need to focus on the path to the goals themselves, not the measurable weight loss or total. By focusing on those goals, the day-to-day becomes easier and the decision to work out in furtherance of those goals is easier and "fun;" rather than a way to "beat the scale" this week. It's a tough adjustment but it's helping as I started to "dig in" on over 5 weeks of a changed lifestyle and the human instinct to go back to the "comfortable."

    Jon
  • hittrain
    hittrain Posts: 38 Member
    This was one of the best weeks so far. Maintaining a healthy diet (including homemade pizzas, shrimp alfredo, and other tasty meals) with moderate exercise resulted in a loss of 5.4 this week. That brings the total to 28.1 so far and was a great pick me up after a smaller than expected loss last week. I'm now within 100 pounds of my overall goal and 12.5 pounds away from my first mini goal (350 by March 23rd). The switch from "LOSE THE WEIGHT" to "eat healthy, work out, and focus on a good lifestyle" is making the road much easier.

    Looking forward to living a healthy week and seeing what the scale says on Saturday.

    Jon
  • hittrain
    hittrain Posts: 38 Member
    edited February 2016
    Well, that was a kick in the pants. I've settled into a rhythm eating well and working out moderately. I'm enjoying this lifestyle. Unfortunately my appendix decided it didn't want to be part of this adventure. After learning I lost 5.9 pounds this week, I ended up in the emergency room to have my appendix removed. I'm struggling with how this affects my diet and exercise this week but since I changed my outlook from losing 125 pounds to be a healthy and active man, I can accept a "tough week" and do what I can until I'm 100 percent. I'm at 356.6 now; down 34 pounds and three pounds from my first mini goal of 353 and 16 away from my stretch goal of 340 by March 23. I'm going to do my best to get physically healthy and move on with my new healthy lifestyle.
  • hittrain
    hittrain Posts: 38 Member
    Ok, post surgery week not so good. I was not able to workout this week and didn't make good food choices. As a result, I was up about a half pound (.6). The good news is I realized that the week was going to be tough and while I tried to keep it steady, I knew I wasn't doing the "healthy" things I need to do. I'm going to take this week as a challenge to get back to it and do my best. I'm still hoping to be under 350 by March 23rd; however, I'm focused on living a healthy lifestyle and staying positive after my first "plus" week in 2016.

  • You're going to go through these weeks, it's not always guaranteed to be a loss / maintain if you're relying on scales. It makes the process more difficult than necessary if you can't come to terms with it, that I know from experience! Find a good support system, use that support system and stick with your plan. I hope you're feeling better :smile:
  • hittrain
    hittrain Posts: 38 Member
    Thanks! The scale is only one motivation factor to be sure. I have others and I'm not "married" to the scale at all. When I started working out, it curbed the number of pounds I was losing but I noticed other benefits. The primary motivator is to live healthy; and generally, I'm on the right track =).

    Jon