Hi all. This week started out great, didn’t end up so great, and I don’t feel very well. Plus, I’m cycling, so I didn’t even get on the scale today. But my pants are still nearly falling off. And I played softball today for the first time, ever. It was really fun AND I wasn’t winded running the bases! But I won’t play again with saggy pants. That’s not so fun.

As Nate was following me up the stairs earlier this week, he put his hands on my hips and said that my waist looks smaller and more accentuated.

Heehee.

And earlier this week I did drop back down into the “teens”, but I’m sure I’m not there now with the cycle and everything.

How was your week?

We missed Health Group- Year 3, week 52 while I was at Black sheep. That’s a shame, but here we are, beginning year 4. Wow.

I’m up a few pounds, but I think it’s mostly water. I’ve lost 2 pounds since yesterday, just in behaving myself and drinking more water to flush out the accumulation of junk over the last week. Like far too many Lay’s potato chips.

The last two weeks of school were really hectic and I literally couldn’t exercise, and didn’t take the time to eat as well as I could have.

We planned food for Black Sheep and did great, in fact, April didn’t think I met my calorie minimum on Friday. But then we came back, and it’s been awful ever since. Just the chaos of school being out, ignoring responsibility to play with fabric, fiber, wheels and yarn, and not having much in the house that supported good eating.

So, today my goal is to plan out food to eat, go to the store, make bread, exercise, etc. to get myself back on track.

I seriously miss it. I’m so tired of snack foods and eating on the go. After just a week of it, it sucks. I want to feel better, have more energy, and start shrinking again.

How are you doing?

As usual for this week, I have no time, so real quick….

I had a great week. I’m down a little bit in my hips. I weight 218.4!!! That means I’ve finally hit the 10 pound mark for the year.

I love CalorieKing.

I haven’t exercised this week, and I’m not giving up. I have until Monday to get 150 minutes in. Which is an hour and fifteen minutes today and tomorrow. Not going to happen, but I’ll try to get something in tomorrow at least.

While frantically cleaning through a big pile of papers today, I came across some measurements and weights from last summer, and I’m smaller than I was then! That’s a happy feeling.

How was your week?

Ok, I know I already posted today, but something incredibly cool just happened, and I want to dance and sing.

I just got dressed (pathetic, I know) and pulled a pair of jeans and a t-shirt out of the pile of clean laundry on my bed. I put them on and noticed as I was walking out of my room that they were extremely loose. Like, 2nd day wearing kind of loose.

I didn’t have time to investigate, as I had to get Veronica to school, but when I came home, I sniffed the laundry to make sure it was in fact a clean load. I continued smelling the clothes, unable to believe that a freshly washed and dried pair of jeans could feel like this on my body, until I came to one of Clark’s shirts. Ah, this will be the absolute, undisputed evidence of clean vs. dirty.

It was clean. Completely clean.

HAPPY DANCE, HAPPY DANCE!! My jeans, which were legitimately getting looser, have still been snug for the first few minutes of wear after a washing.

Not today, Zurg!

So I’m shaking my cosmic thing today. Nothin’ like a little success to boost motivation, eh?

As I typed in the title of this entry, I’m really quite amazed that we’re rapidly approaching the 4th year of Health Group. Wow. Every Saturday for nearly 3 complete years. That’s really something.

How long have you been following Health Group? I know some of you have been here for a long time.

I’ve been bad. I’ve been really bad. I don’t know what’s wrong with me, or why I’m having such a hard time, because I LOVE the program I’m on with CalorieKing, and it’s the first time I’ve really believed that I had the knowledge I needed to lose weight.

So what’s the freaking problem?

I don’t know, but dear Hayden gave me a sound, verbal butt kicking on Wednesday night, and it was great. I needed it. I needed more than justification, sympathy, and a buy-in to my excuses. She was having none of it, and it was refreshing.

I still ate bad Thursday and Friday, but yesterday as the day was ending, and I’d gone over my calorie target each day, and my fat limits were through the roof, and I hadn’t exercised, I said “ENOUGH!” and went for an hour long walk. And I went the direction that took me up what we call the “monster hill” in our family.

It was my first time walking up that huge hill, and it wasn’t even hard! That’s so cool. Similar to what Stephanie experienced when she saw John Mayer at the Gorge. I’m right with ya’. (BTW, Steph, I can’t believe how similar we seem to be. You’re making soaps, embroidering, and sewing. Three things I’m desperately wanting to do. Not to mention dieting, seeing John Mayer concerts, raising babies… We totally need to get together).

Anyway, despite my bad behavior, I only gained .8 pounds this week. I’m stoked. And I’m still down a smidge in my measurements. 1/4 inch in my thigh and 1/2 inch in my chest.

Whoot!

So, good week and bad week, depending on how you look at it. But I’m feeling very motivated right now. I have 90 minutes of exercise to squeeze in between today and tomorrow to fulfill my minimum for Calorie King, and I intend to do it. And I’m going to push myself.

Plus, I’m going to drink a ton of water to flush all the sugar and crap out of my body. It always seems to help.

How are you doing?

I’m exhausted. Can’t talk. I’m going to try to sleep for the remaining hour and a half before the girls last piano recital this afternoon. Their teacher is retiring to have a baby.

Miraculously, I managed to make my weight goal for June 1st, which was 220 pounds. I’d had some really bad eating days, plus I felt like I had been gearing up to cycle all week, so I didn’t think there was the smallest chance of making it. But on Thursday I was 220.4, so I worked hard and on Friday, 220. I’m thrilled.

I’m not 220 anymore. I think I’m 222 today, but the impending threat of cycling has become reality so I’m bloated and feel yucky. Plus, we were on the road all day yesterday to get to the Ben Folds and John Mayer concert and I ate bad, mainly because there wasn’t much choice.

I love Ben Folds. I wish he wasn’t such a potty mouth. He was in full form last night.

John Mayer puts on a good show. I like him even better now than I did before. He’s very funny. I’d say more but I’m sooo tired, I feel yucky, and I’m going to bed.

How was your week?

I’m up a pound this week, measurements are the same. And I’m really ok with that. I ate way too much this week. Lots of indulgences. My birthday weekend was extremely high calorie and spanned three days. In fact, I think that Wednesday was my only somewhat respectable day in terms of food.

I exercised a lot this week, and much more intense than usual. It felt good. I was excited to be able to push myself that hard.

I’m still feeling really good. The thing that is bothering me the most is that I’ve wanted more food than usual. And I go over my saturated fat limits almost every day. The littlest bit of cheese and BAM! It sucks.

I’m still plenty motivated, and I’m sure I’ll do better next week. I still need to focus on drinking more water, eating less fat and more vegetables, staying in my calorie target but truly, this is the first week it’s been difficult for me. Maybe I’m premenstrual. ‘Cause I’ve been grumpy, too.

How was your week?

My birthday ended up turning into a 2 1/2 day junkfoodfest. I’m anxious to have a good, healthy eating day again, because I don’t feel good when I eat like that, despite how enjoyable it is. So, I’ve had my Strawberry-Orange-Fiber shake and vitamins this morning, with 2 glasses of water down so far.

And I remember what I wanted to talk about yesterday! I’m confident that I’m not the first one to have thought of this, but it occurred to me a couple days ago that I could possibly both knit and exercise at the same time on a recumbent exercise bike.

Have any of you done this?

My in-laws have one, so I hauled Mary’s Koigu glove-in-progress over there last night to have a go.

It works.

HA-hahahahahhhhhh!

I think I could easily work out an hour a day if I’m knitting! And I was looking for a new thing to do because walking isn’t always getting my heart rate up where I’d like it anymore. I still weigh too much to jog, and if I continue my upper body weights a couple times a week…. I don’t see a down side to this.

What are your thoughts?

Moving on, I’ve cast on for the second mitt and I’m probably still not going to have enough yarn to finish off the thumbs, so I’m going to go back to Weaving Works to look for a coordinating color that’ll blend more than contrast.

Still plugging along. I wish it was going faster, but at least I’m still going down.

I’m down 1 pound this week.

1/2 inch in my chest.

1/2 inch in my waist.

1/2 inch in my hips.

1/4 inch in my thigh.

More than that, I feel thinner. (So why am I still fitting into my clothes)? It’s slowing down, so I worry a bit about next week’s check in. But I’ve been thinking about what I can do to help, and I have some ideas.

My water consumption, while still adequate, is half of what it was the first couple of weeks. If I step it back up, maybe that will help.

I should be eating more vegetables, and I could eat a bit less protein, according to Calorie King’s recommended percentages.

This is where I’m at

The recommended percentages are

Fat, 20-30%

Carbs, 40-60%

Protein, 15-20%

So I’m a bit off. Not much. It’s been great eating carbs again. The first two days, I felt really tired in the afternoon, and I was worried about the blood sugar crash associated with eating carbs. But since then,

I’ve. felt. great.

Really great. So while the progress is a little slow, the process still isn’t difficult. I’d say it’s even enjoyable because of the complete lack of guilt and worry. My brother took me to lunch at an italian cafe yesterday for my upcoming birthday. I had the eggplant penne, and snitched some of his linguini with manilla clams. We ate the warm focaccia. It came with a fabulous cesaer salad.

I came home, input it to the best of my ability into my online calorie diary (pretending it was Olive Garden, because those meals are in the system), went a little light on dinner, and I was fine for the day. The calories, the percentages, everything. And as it usually turns out, if I eat a high calorie meal, I’m not usually that hungry for the next meal, so eating a little less isn’t a problem.

I’m meeting my exercise goal of 150 minutes per week and my calorie target every day. Even through last weekend which I was concerned about. Flying colors. This rocks.

How was your week?