Women 200lb+, Let's Be Extra Awesome This August!!!

Monday Check-in
SW 230.78 lbs (16/03/2020) 104.9 Kgs
CW 182.6 lbs / 83kgs

🌻 03/08 83Kg 182.6 (-0.3Kgs) (-0.66lbs)

🌻 The scale didn't really move at all this week, but a loss is a loss. I've noticed a pattern of two weeks of good loss and two weeks of slow loss.

I have a goal of losing 6,6 lbs a month (3kgs), which I have reached every month so far. I've increased my exercise to 45 min of fast walking a day, and do about 3 longer hikes with friends a week, those hikes have become an absolute joy, exploring our local area and just getting out in nature. I would like to be more consistent drinking water, so this week I'm planning on drinking 2l daily (I read that drinking water inconsistently will show on the scale, so I want to test it)

I have struggled with all sorts of eating disorders for most of my life. This weight loss journey is unfolding into something more than just losing on the scale. I feel in control and empowered with good choices, discipline, and most of all I feel stronger and healthier. I went into the office the other day and people started commenting on my weight loss, however one comment really struck me 'Oh you are going to have to have plastic surgery now!' Wow in my mind I'm smashing through ceilings, I realize I don't need validation from other people! So ladies lets empower ourselves and encourage each other through this Awesome August (🌻 Thanks Raven)

Walking progress... I'm not good at exercising - I'm not motivated but I have been walking 30 mins/day for the last three days and feel better already! I also download the Map My Walk app that connects to MFP and this makes the walk funner to track and I like that it maps out where I walked. I believe I've not made the progress I want because I'm not very interested to do exercise but I'm holding myself accountable with the MMW app now. I hope to see progress in the coming weeks

It's nice to wake up to the scale showing you a pound down. I'm at 39 pounds lost.

Today I have housework to do, and I need to see if I can put the new small a/c unit in, because it will make life better if I can. The old one had problems; it blew air, but not cold air, no matter what you set it on. Also some tidying up and putting things in order so that when the boys come they can help me with the things that need extra hands and strong men, as opposed to sitting round playing with the cat and chatting. We're going to do some of that anyway, of course.

Lunch will be chicken and jalapeno quesadillas, which is always well received.

motivatedsister wrote: »

CW: 210.9 (7/27)
August GW: 199 (I know that's ambitious, and I won't be too sad if I miss it. But too hard to resist reaching ONEderland when it's so close!)

8/3: 207.7 (-3.2)
8/10:
8/17:
8/24:
8/31:

Happy with today's loss! I think TOM bloating finally went away and took some weight with it lol. I made lunch for the week on Saturday so I should be good to go for at least two meals of the day - breakfast is a protein shake. I didn't get around to planning dinner and that's usually my pitfall. My son is 1 so I've been trying to work on cooking things that he can eat as well to save time, versus making him something separate.

Also I've been consciously trying not to have a late dinner so it's better if I can make something in the crockpot so it's ready by the time I get home. If I have to cook when I get home that usually means a late dinner. But try to keep my calories low for breakfast/lunch that I can still meet my calorie goal if I have to grab something quick that maybe isn't the best calorie option. Definitely a habit I need to break....that's a work in progress!

I think some meal planning might help you; you can plan what you will cook, and also plan in a small snack that you can have in the car on the way home, so you aren't starving. You could also cook some dinners on the weekend and have them in the fridge for yourself/the little one. That wouldn't be a late dinner, it would just warm up quickly in the microwave. Plus premade like that you can dish out so much plain for the child, then add spices to suit you and dish out yours, and generally do a little customizing in advance when you have the time to do it. If you know that you have some almonds in the car you can eat as you head over to pick up kid, and that there's pulled pork with mac and cheese and green beans at home waiting to be warmed up (and kid is having mac and cheese and green beans) then there's no worry, and no stress. Then you can drop your crockpot meals down to one or two a week when it's easier for you to plan them, and everything gets a little less fraught.

Thanks! @AlexandraFindsHerself1971

Totally agree with you - I just need to do it! I loosely make plans so that I have a general idea of what I need for my grocery run. But nothing concrete. Using the crockpot twice a week is usually what I try to do as we tend to have leftovers.

I'll be good one week, and then not have a plan for the next week and just try to wing it! And I'm not someone who enjoys cooking (recipes are my friend if you catch my drift lol), so I don't do so well when I don't already have something picked out.

I'm not really a snacker. My kiddo is usually ready to eat once we walk in the door, so it can be a mad rush to get him fed. He's in a needy phase and my husband isn't home yet so I have to keep him occupied. So he eats, we take an evening walk, and by then it's pretty much time to get him down for bed. So sometimes I don't even get started on "our" meal until after he's asleep - so after 7.

I like your weekend idea! I'll give that a try this weekend. Even if I can get things chopped/cut/etc. that would make it easier to get a meal together during the week.

Ignore the title of the book because the book is packed full of great information..it’s become our food bible for sure!

@MuttiNM - I didn't take a diet break. I kept a 1000 calorie deficit for a year. The month of June I decreased it to a 500 day deficit. Now I'm trying to eat at maintenance, but I'm probably still eating at a 250 calorie deficit based on my slow weight loss.

I had planned to make March "Maintenance March" because It was Portland Dining month and I had a vacation and out of town conference planned, but then Corona happened -all those plans were canceled and so I just kept up with the deficit.

I had heard about diet breaks and practicing maintenance, but I really didn't think I needed a break. Things were working out well for me and my weight loss wasn't stalling. But as I started doing endurance training in preparation for running the half marathon, I realized that I needed to give my body more fuel - I didn't have enough energy to run for 90+ minutes on a low carb diet,1000 calorie deficit (even with eating exercise calories). So while I didn't go to maintenance, I slowed down my weight loss and increased my carbs.

So, you know the guy AAdam who writes the physiqonomics blog? The one who wrote the article referenced by @eliezalot about scale weight fluctuations earlier in this thread? Well, I actually emailed him this very question back in May. And he ANSWERED it in his next blog! Here was my question and his helpful answer:

"Q:) I've heard recommendations that one should eat at maintenance for a month or two for every 10% of body weight lost to 'reset' their weight set point. The idea is that this will result in more permanent weight loss. Is there any science to back up this claim? I've lost 100 pounds over the last year by eating at a consistent calorie deficit and never had the desire to take a diet break because I don't feel deprived. My diet feels sustainable and I feel prepared for maintenance when the time comes. I'd hate to think I've set myself up for failure because I didn't take diet breaks along the way. What do you think?

A:) There isn't any science to back up that specific claim. That is, weight set points can be reset by manipulating the diet. And neither will there be because you can't.

Just to clarify, when I say you can't reset your weight set point, I'm referring to the idea that intermittent breaks from the diet cause physiological changes to occur that eventually make maintaining a lower body fat percentage 'effortless' (according to the claims).

The only way to establish a new set point–and I use that terminology very loosely–so you can maintain a lower level of body fat is to build good habits that are conducive to weight maintenance. Regular exercise (structured workouts and daily movement). Ensuring the majority of your diet is filled with whole foods that are nutrient-rich and consuming adequate protein.

With all of that said, diet breaks are still something I recommend and use with my clients.

We know dieting leads to some hormonal downregulation that can make it harder to stick to the diet. A short diet break could, potentially, help reverse some of the negative side effects of dieting.

And if a 1-2 week break increases energy levels and lowers hunger, it helps improve adherence and motivation for the next round of dieting.

Lastly, and perhaps most importantly, it gives the client time to 'practice' maintenance. People become so obsessed with losing weight that the thought of never eating in a deficit is alien to them. Forcing them to increase calories and practice life after dieting reminds them of the ultimate goal (spoiler: it's not the weight loss).

But whether you decide to implement a diet break is up to you. If you feel fine and things are progressing, then keep dieting for as long as you need to and implement a break when it makes sense, like coinciding a diet break with a holiday. You know, when we used to do stuff like that."

His answer was really reassuring and also gave me permission that next month when my energy did start to flag, that it was okay to start eating more!

So, in short: You do you. If you think its time for a deficit break, than it's time. If things are going well, keep going, until they aren't anymore.