Weight-loss "task-force" challenge
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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
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Today is day 31 of the Omer. Today's quote from Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks:
“Remember your destination. This will help you to distinguish between an opportunity to be seized and a temptation to be resisted.”
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I think today's quote is spot-on for weight-loss. While I think Rabbi Sacks is suggesting that we distinguish between things that we should strive to do versus those that we should avoid, I think it can also be interpreted to say that even those moments where we might simply say there is a temptation to be resisted, we can reframe those moments into opportunities. In my mind, for example, instead of "white-knuckling" it to avoid having an evening snack, that moment can be reframed as an opportunity to demonstrate how committed we are to our "destination." I dunno, just a thought.
@linmueller, yes, I am also glad that we did a little "refresh" on our challenge: I needed the kick in the rear to get more firmly back-on-track!
Once again I can proudly say that yesterday went into the "win" column. I wasn't even significantly tempted by the popcorn my wife was eating while we were watching a show together. There are still cravings with some frequency, but they really do seem to be weakening (or more correctly, I am using those cravings as an opportunity to demonstrate that I understand what they are and am not powerless over them!).
Anyway, crazy busy day today during the day. I may have to spend some time tonight working as well...we'll see.0 -
@cakeman21k I'm sure you can, at least, weigh-in at any WW center, and, unless they have an overflow crown, I'm sure they'll let you stay for the meeting.0
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Good day, again, yesterday. Down 0.8# for the day (at home) AND down 0.4# (234.8) at WW this morning. Lowest weight at WW was 229.4 on 8/8/2014.0
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@cakeman21k congrats on your losing streak! Your RV trip sounds awesome! We also do a lot of our own cooking when we can (ie. a week in a condo). It really helps me to keep things low point, activities up, and splurge on regional specialties (ie. I'm not going to Nashville w/o BBQ and a trip to Puckett's LOL).
As far as stopping into meetings, I think it's still doable. Stop in to weigh in and if they have an open seat, it's yours. I think most studios are pretty accommodating. Mine def is!
And about virtual leaders, I've tried a bunch and most make me cringe. I do have 2 I like. One is Kimmi F. I've gone to a few of her meetings and liked them all. I esp like the 8:30 a.m. Tues morning and the 11:30 MI time Sat (It's her last Sat morning meeting). Kimmi is one of the int'l meeting coaches.
I also like Lisa C. Her's are local virtual so you have to go in thru the local studio on Connect. I usually try to catch her Tues night one. She works out of Grandville MI and Holland MI studios. If you want to check her's out, I can get you meeting #s and times.
Good luck! You've got this! Nothing more motivating than making progress!0 -
steve0mania wrote: »Today is day 31 of the Omer. Today's quote from Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks:
“Remember your destination. This will help you to distinguish between an opportunity to be seized and a temptation to be resisted.”
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This total makes me think about yesterday. I had 9 DPs left, so I had an "opportunity" to eat ice cream or drink bourbon but instead resisted the temptation to feed my body things with no nutritional value, and seized the opportunity to have a bigger calorie deficit and, as Steve said, demonstrate how committed I am to my destination!
I really love this mindset! Of course, it's easy to say now that I'm past the white knuckling that eating sweets results in. Argggg! That reminds me that the donut I've been considering eating tomorrow is not going to get me closer to my desired destination, so I guess I will either demonstrate my commitment, by not getting one or, if I'm feeling really committed (as in strong 💪), get one to bring home to DH. We'll see! 😬
As for my day, another one in the win column! Exercised. Slept (lights out by 11 as planned). Left 4 DPs so i can carry them over and end the week with 9, Thurs and the weekend we're not pretty! I also only had 2 meals today. Was in meetings all morning, so breakfast/lunch at 11, then not hungry again until dinner at 6. I'm amazed at how seldom I'm drawn to the snack cupboard or even thinking about food! It feels soooo good to be free from that obsession!
WI tomorrow should be encouraging! Onward!1 -
Today is day 32 of the Omer. Today's quote from Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks:
“You are as important as you make other people feel.”
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I've got an early morning so just enough time for a quick check-in.
Yesterday went exactly as-planned. Another "win" for the challenge. As Lin suggested, there is somewhat less "white-knuckling" through the evening. There are still thoughts of "gee, it'd be nice to relax with a glass of wine while I read" while I am driving home, but once I get home, and caught up with the work-to-home mental transition, those thoughts mostly dissipate.
Today's quote fits nicely with the overall theme of self-improvement. While we shouldn't completely deprive ourselves, there is great value in reaching out beyond ourselves. It's often easier said than done, but moving away from self-centeredness and towards an outward point of view would make ourselves, and the world, much better!0 -
Down another 1.6# today. Going through my computer shutdown last night, I checkec MFP to see it I logged everything, and BAM! 287 left for the day. Didn't eat any more!! Good decision. Another low, about 3# above my lowest, since I started, at 335#. 0
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Gosh @Al_Howard you mentioned doing what you can in another thread. Sounds like it's paying off!
Love that quote @steve0mania . The world would definitely be a better place if we all looked outside of ourselves a little more.
As for my day, it was stellar! I exercised, ate w/in points, and had a good WW workshop and WI.
I noticed today that I'm tracking more honestly and carefully. If I'm not sure, I'll err on the high side rather than try to game the system, tho really, I'm gaming myself 🤦🏼♀️. The more accurate and cautious tracking may explain why I lost this week despite two point heavy days and only 9 WPs left. It's so weird to be having all these lightbulb moments after doing this program for years.
And I'm still thinking about having points left as being NOT an opportunity to eat more, but an opportunity to have a bigger calorie deficit, and more importantly, to prove my commitment to my destination! This is game changing!1 -
Held the line yesterday. More and more concious in losing mode.1
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Today is day 33 of the Omer (also known as Lag b'omer). Today's quote from Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks:
When you experience suffering, the question to ask is 'Given this has happened, what then shall I do?’ for this has an answer not of thought but of deed.”"
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A little background on the time-period of the Omer is in order. While counting the omer is a biblical commandment, other customs have arisen around this time period. During this time period, Rabbi Akiva (one of the most famous of the Rabbis that lived around the time-period of the destruction of the second Temple, and perhaps was a supporter of the Bar Kockba revolt) had 24,000 students who died (perhaps via plague). Jews spend a part (in my tradition, it's the first 32 days) of the omer period following certain mourning practices (like no haircuts or shaving). On the 33rd day (Lag B'Omer), the deaths stopped, so the mourning period stops. Also, another major rabbi (Shimon bar Yochai), died on Lag B'Omer, but before he died, he said that the anniversary of his death should be a celebrated day, rather than a day of mourning. As such, Lag B'Omer is a semi-holiday for Jews.
I bring this background to note a tragedy that happened today in Israel: at least 44 people were killed by a "crush" at the tomb of Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai. It's horrendous and unbelievable. Rather than a day of celebration, today is a day of sorrow in the Jewish community.
This all brings me to our quote for the day: there is suffering today. "Given this has happened, what then shall I do?"
I don't have a great answer for that at the moment, except to say that I will try to put a little more positive energy into the world. I need to create an action, rather than simply "thoughts and prayers" (though these are also helpful). I will think about that today and work on a plan.
So, onto the relatively mundane: I completed this week by sticking to my plan even better than I had anticipated. There were no alcohol or snacks from Sunday through today, which is a total win. My cravings are improving and I'm feeling a bit more in-control of myself.
I was rewarded with a 0.2 pound gain! Ha ha ha.
This isn't actually bothersome, though. I know I did the right things, and if not this week, then next week I will see a little more movement on the scale. There's simply no way that I can't! It may just take a little time for my body to catch up with my intake/output.1 -
Today was like the rest this week except I used a few weeklies. The positive is that I made conscious decisions re. what I wanted to eat, no mindless grazing, and am not finding myself in front of the snack cupboard arguing with myself. This is making healthy eating toward my goal, much easier!
Sad loss of many lives Steve 😔. I appreciate how you are applying the daily quote to the tradgedy.0 -
Yesterday was ... Interesting.
Went to grandkid soccer games, didn't make time to eat first. Hungry when we got home at noon, so warmed up 0 sp mex rice w/2 pt cheese on top. Ate 1 sp popcorn a little later, and then met SIL at BBQ place for her birthday dinner (a little later than desired, but had to wait until after Red Wing win in a shoot out 🤣), and again, I was hungry! This is where it got interesting. They were out of smoked chicken, my first choice at any BBQ joint. No good options at all, so I had the bacon cheese burger w/ fries 😳 which sounded really good to me. I could have eaten half, but it was amazing and I was hungry! so I chose to eat it all! Tracked it, no 🔵 obviously, and, about an hour later, I was really full for the first time in longer than I can remember. I hope I remember this for next time, but I still am not totally convinced that I made a bad decision.
I enjoyed every bite 🤷🏼♀️. I didn't enjoy being over full. Burgers don't reheat well... I'm going to have to think about this a little more.
Activity was good, and I was mindful, no random, mindless eating. In the end, I'm calling this day a win despite not totally moving me towards my desired destination. Ya, I'm definitely going to have to think about this a little more!0 -
Down 0.2# from yesterday. A loss is a loss. Good day, overall.0
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Saturday was day 34 of the Omer, and today is day 35 of the Omer. Saturday's and today's quotes from Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks:
“Never let negative emotions distort your perceptions. To see the world as it is, not as you are afraid it might be, let faith banish fear."
“If you seek to learn, grow, pursue truth and find freedom, seek places that welcome argument and respect dissenting views.”
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I had to go into work today because I have a major deadline coming up, and there simply aren't enough hours during the normal work-week to finish! I did get a lot done, but I'm now totally fried from focusing so deeply for so many hours.
Shabbat went very well, mostly as planned. Reasonable portions (though maybe Saturday lunch was a little more "generous" than I intended, I still think it was reasonable), one dessert each on Friday night and Saturday lunch, plenty of wine, but no extra snacking. I even had my Shabbat beers before we shut all of our electronics down.
Today has also been on-track, so far.
The one thing that I am already recognizing is the "I deserve" thought process. My brain is saying "gee, I worked hard today and now I'm drained...wouldn't it be nice to have a glass of wine to relax with?" Plus, it would be very easy to rationalize it today...I *did* work hard, and it *is* the weekend, right? Plus I *do* need to relax, right? The rationalizations are coming fast-and-furious, and the problem, of course, is that I *kinda* believe them!
So we'll see how the evening goes. ;-)
BTW, both quotes above are great!0 -
Down 2.5 from yesterday, but then yesterday was up by 2 from the Saturday. Gotta love these fluctuations0
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Down 1.4#.Yup, fluctuations. BUT I'm down 2.0# from last Monday. Onward!!0
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Today is day 36 of the Omer. Saturday's and today's quotes from Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks:
“Life lives in the tension between our physical smallness and our spiritual greatness. Life is short, but when we lift our eyes to heaven, we walk tall.”
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Good morning everyone! I "won" my evening battle yesterday. I managed to skip the glass of wine (or three) last night, and went to bed unscathed. It wasn't even a big white-knuckle moment, but rather more of an active decision that I simply wasn't going to have anything after dinner (except for some flavored water). All-in-all, Sunday was a success. That's important, because I often am much "looser" with my intake on Sunday, as part of the weekend. If I think more clearly about things, I'd rather be looser on Friday-Saturday (Shabbat) than on Sunday, and so that's the plan.
Now it's back to the regular old weekday mode. Three normal meals, no snacks, no alcohol, exercise 5 days, and I will be "on-track."
Today's quote reminds me of an overarching theme that I really like: we are meant to have some humility, and to recognize that we weren't put on earth to focus only on ourselves, but rather, by focusing on the "spiritual," we reach beyond ourselves and put some additional good into the world. It's easy to remember when you're standing in the synagogue (or church, mosque, or where ever), but often harder to remember when your sitting at your desk at work, driving your car, or waiting on-line at the DMV! I will try to come up with one random act of kindness today at work and see how that goes.0 -
Up 1 from yesterday annoying as today is my WW weigh in day!0
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Up 1.4. Think I'm retaining "stuff" 0
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This week has been busier than expected, so, going back to Sunday ...
Decided Sat night to have the fam over Sun. So the dao was filled with shopping and food prep. I sat for 5 minutes and the kids started to arrive. Busy playing, and no appetizers out to tempt me. Dinner was ribs, mac & cheese, corn bread (new recipe and yummy), and 5 healthy sides. Ate 2 ribs, 1 piece of cornbread and sides. Dessert was lightened up by sf/low fat and noone noticed! Two meal day so not bad at all! Could have skipped the Truly but it was good, and stopped with one!
Yesterday I was woken by my mom's phone call. Long story short, spent the morning plus in the ER with her, then the rest of the day and night at her house. Looks like she's going to be ok, a relief. As for the diet, first meal was at 3p, regular spaghetti and meat sauce, mom's leftovers. Dinner was leftover 0 SP mex rice and 1 sp potato salad that I grabbed from my house when I went for clothes etc. No chocolate cake, no snacking.
I'm feeling pretty good about not stress eating. I'm also aware that I may struggle tonight when I get home, so I'm trying to think that thru in light of my goal/desired destination (really liking that word).
I'm putting these these two days firmly in the WIN column!0
