Okay. It appears that I either was carrying water weight, or I just need to stop weighing so often. Fluctuations of several pounds is a weird phenomenon. Unfortunately, because I'm hovering so close to around 180, that anything in the 170s feels like a big success. Such a success, in fact, that it makes me feel like dancing (side note: Boots, my dog, gets very confused when I dance. He sees me moving around and wants to be involved, but he doesn't understand what I am apparently expecting him to do). Anything in the 180s feels a lot like failure.
Today, I weighed in at 178.75. I worked out hard, I sweat a lot. I felt good. I'm sticking to my mini-commitment of drinking more water. I'm still iffy on sticking to my commitment to not eat so late. Especially since late night eating is often super shitty food. I currently do weekly weigh-ins along with my friend on her blog. She and I were in The Vagina Monologues together in college. YAYYY VAGINAS!!!
Anyway, I weighed in at 178.75 on Thursday, March 17. I then kind of jumped around on the scale the next week, but weighed in at 178.75 on the following Thursday. After that, I was seeing steady increases until today! Back to the 178.75. Now to go LOWER!
I was feeling really discouraged by the increases on the scale as well as by my job/lifestyle being so greatly incompatible with healthy eating habits. I'm feeling better now, making small changes. But I often feel great right in the middle of the week. Enthusiasm: ENGAGE!
I apparently like ending paragraphs in ALL CAPS.
Wednesday, March 30, 2011
Monday, March 28, 2011
Weekends and Fruit
I did an okay-ish job of not fucking everything up this weekend. Of course, I could have been better. I was moderately active. I didn't go to the gym on either Sat or Sun, though.
On Friday, I felt super motivated to cook a healthy meal. I cooked a pork loin in the crock pot that turned out WAYYY more tender than I had intended. I cooked it with Dijon and white wine. I steamed up some broccoli, and as the starch, I made "skinny" crispy potatoes. I parboiled the cubed potatoes before straining them, spreading them on a baking sheet with salt, pepper, paprika, herbs de provence, and a LITTLE bit of oil and roasted them in the oven at 450 to crisp them up. The whole meal came in at less than 400 calories and was very tastey (misspelling intentional).
I went to the gym today on my lunch break for 25 minutes of hard cardio on the Arc Trainer. I was sweating it up. But it wasn't as hard as it usually is. I don't know if that's because I wasn't pushing myself or if I'm getting better at it. Dunno. Also, I weighed in at lunch just for fun. Now, my normal weigh-in time is in the evenings, so I don't know how this compares. 181.75 lbs. Mmooooooo.
So that's a 1.5lb gain? Ugh. Water. Calories. Exercise.
What to do?
1) SODIUM IS THE DEBBUL. Drink more water, you heifer.
2) Try to change when I eat. Night-time eating is also the debbul.
In food-related news, the Sunflower Market had a lot of gorgeous strawberries and blueberries on sale. If you aren't lucky enough to live around here, the Sunflower Market is a sort of local Whole Foods. They have piles and piles of various vitamin shelves and a whole section of the store smells like patchouli. However, they have one of the most abundant and beautiful produce sections I've ever seen. Their weekly sales are incredible, they acquire a LOT of their produce locally, and their sales really encourage eating the things which are in season (rather than the things that must be shipped from Chile or whatever. Who needs mangos in December, anyway?).
So I went in the store because their berries were on sale. I came out with about 10 pounds of apples, oranges, tangelos, tangerines, berries, and dried figs. It's kind of fun to have a fruit-only shopping spree. All the bright colors made me think how I'm going to be vitamin-ed and antioxidant-ed to high heaven in the next week.
Fruit in oatmeal. Fruit in greek yogurt. Fruit-only lunches. YAY FRUIT. Fruit is a funny word.
On Friday, I felt super motivated to cook a healthy meal. I cooked a pork loin in the crock pot that turned out WAYYY more tender than I had intended. I cooked it with Dijon and white wine. I steamed up some broccoli, and as the starch, I made "skinny" crispy potatoes. I parboiled the cubed potatoes before straining them, spreading them on a baking sheet with salt, pepper, paprika, herbs de provence, and a LITTLE bit of oil and roasted them in the oven at 450 to crisp them up. The whole meal came in at less than 400 calories and was very tastey (misspelling intentional).
I went to the gym today on my lunch break for 25 minutes of hard cardio on the Arc Trainer. I was sweating it up. But it wasn't as hard as it usually is. I don't know if that's because I wasn't pushing myself or if I'm getting better at it. Dunno. Also, I weighed in at lunch just for fun. Now, my normal weigh-in time is in the evenings, so I don't know how this compares. 181.75 lbs. Mmooooooo.
So that's a 1.5lb gain? Ugh. Water. Calories. Exercise.
What to do?
1) SODIUM IS THE DEBBUL. Drink more water, you heifer.
2) Try to change when I eat. Night-time eating is also the debbul.
In food-related news, the Sunflower Market had a lot of gorgeous strawberries and blueberries on sale. If you aren't lucky enough to live around here, the Sunflower Market is a sort of local Whole Foods. They have piles and piles of various vitamin shelves and a whole section of the store smells like patchouli. However, they have one of the most abundant and beautiful produce sections I've ever seen. Their weekly sales are incredible, they acquire a LOT of their produce locally, and their sales really encourage eating the things which are in season (rather than the things that must be shipped from Chile or whatever. Who needs mangos in December, anyway?).
So I went in the store because their berries were on sale. I came out with about 10 pounds of apples, oranges, tangelos, tangerines, berries, and dried figs. It's kind of fun to have a fruit-only shopping spree. All the bright colors made me think how I'm going to be vitamin-ed and antioxidant-ed to high heaven in the next week.
Fruit in oatmeal. Fruit in greek yogurt. Fruit-only lunches. YAY FRUIT. Fruit is a funny word.
Friday, March 25, 2011
Faux Plateau. Still at 179.25
So I'm nearing the point where I usually quit the weight-loss attempt. I've lost some weight, I'm seeing little changes in my body, and I'm encouraged by it. I'm simultaneously discouraged by the fact that I will not see significant changes for, oh, I don't know, 3 months or so. As such, my excitement and impatience makes me think: fuck it! I can eat that. I'll work it off in the gym.
Right now, the calorie deficits aren't what they were in the beginning on my FitBit tracker. Additionally, I've not been sticking to the weight training that I had initially wanted to do. I've just been churning away on cardio.
So this isn't a real plateau. It's a self-induced plateau in which I'm not eating like I should, I'm not weight training like I had wanted to, and my enthusiasm for the whole process is waning.
HOWEVER! I hadn't really noticed this trend actively. I've been honestly logging my calories on the FitBit site, and (today) looking back at my last week of intake vs. burn (something I hadn't done in a while due to my shame over the weekend eating disaster), I noticed that I'm not doing as well as I should have been doing. And there was a spark. That sort of competitive jolt that makes me want to do better. I will.
Here's my commitment for today:
1) Gym at lunch AND after work. I'm feeling high in energy and I want to really challenge my body today. (ETA: I did! 25 minutes of hard cardio at lunch, a warm-up cardio along with biceps and chest in the evening)
2) DO NOT have a lazy couch Saturday like I did last week. (ETA: It was still a pretty lazy couch Saturday)
3) Go for a long walk with the dog on Sunday. Maybe to the dog park? Maybe a jog? (I hate running on the roads. Hated? It's been almost a year since I've been out running, so maybe give it another shot?).
(ETA: I went to the dog park and did a lot of walking on Sunday)
Oh. And here's another dumb thing. My body's...umm...digestive system does better when I eat better. FINE intestines, whatever YOU want.
Right now, the calorie deficits aren't what they were in the beginning on my FitBit tracker. Additionally, I've not been sticking to the weight training that I had initially wanted to do. I've just been churning away on cardio.
So this isn't a real plateau. It's a self-induced plateau in which I'm not eating like I should, I'm not weight training like I had wanted to, and my enthusiasm for the whole process is waning.
HOWEVER! I hadn't really noticed this trend actively. I've been honestly logging my calories on the FitBit site, and (today) looking back at my last week of intake vs. burn (something I hadn't done in a while due to my shame over the weekend eating disaster), I noticed that I'm not doing as well as I should have been doing. And there was a spark. That sort of competitive jolt that makes me want to do better. I will.
Here's my commitment for today:
1) Gym at lunch AND after work. I'm feeling high in energy and I want to really challenge my body today. (ETA: I did! 25 minutes of hard cardio at lunch, a warm-up cardio along with biceps and chest in the evening)
2) DO NOT have a lazy couch Saturday like I did last week. (ETA: It was still a pretty lazy couch Saturday)
3) Go for a long walk with the dog on Sunday. Maybe to the dog park? Maybe a jog? (I hate running on the roads. Hated? It's been almost a year since I've been out running, so maybe give it another shot?).
(ETA: I went to the dog park and did a lot of walking on Sunday)
Oh. And here's another dumb thing. My body's...umm...digestive system does better when I eat better. FINE intestines, whatever YOU want.
Thursday, March 24, 2011
Day 1 of late lunching and a shitty disposition.
I'm experimenting with the "late lunch" thing today. It's now 16:55, I'm at the very end of my 1hr lunch break, and I'm about to head back to work. I feel exhausted. I got plenty of sleep last night. I did drink a lot of caffeine this morning, so maybe it's a crash. I just feel like I could lay down right now and sleep until work tomorrow morning.
So here's the problem. I plan to go to the gym tonight. Hell or high water, right? Fuck. I mentally commit to going to the gym when I'm bright and chipper at 10:00, and by 17:30 or so, I sometimes try to talk myself out of it. Maybe now after 6 weeks of this, I'm getting close to the "burnout" phase.
But fortunately, my 17:30-isn't very convincing yet. I haven't managed to skip out once I've committed, and I don't think I will today.
Another motivator is the weigh-in for the reluctantwwfoodie group. I have two friends with weight loss blogs. One is at fatopera.blogspot.com and another is at reluctantwwfoodie.wordpress.com . Both are fun to follow. On the RWWF blog, she has a group of her buddies weighing in with her on Thursdays. I have joined in there. I do weigh myself in between Thursdays, too. I have access to several different scales: A shitty one at home (rarely used, I don't think it's very accurate), a nice digital one at the Boyfriend's, one of those Dr's office types with the weights and notches at the gym. I only use the one at the gym.
So weigh in at the gym tonight? If I can manage to improve my attitude, I guess. (ETA: I did improve my attitude. 25 minutes of churning away HARD on the elliptical).
So here's the problem. I plan to go to the gym tonight. Hell or high water, right? Fuck. I mentally commit to going to the gym when I'm bright and chipper at 10:00, and by 17:30 or so, I sometimes try to talk myself out of it. Maybe now after 6 weeks of this, I'm getting close to the "burnout" phase.
But fortunately, my 17:30-isn't very convincing yet. I haven't managed to skip out once I've committed, and I don't think I will today.
Another motivator is the weigh-in for the reluctantwwfoodie group. I have two friends with weight loss blogs. One is at fatopera.blogspot.com and another is at reluctantwwfoodie.wordpress.com . Both are fun to follow. On the RWWF blog, she has a group of her buddies weighing in with her on Thursdays. I have joined in there. I do weigh myself in between Thursdays, too. I have access to several different scales: A shitty one at home (rarely used, I don't think it's very accurate), a nice digital one at the Boyfriend's, one of those Dr's office types with the weights and notches at the gym. I only use the one at the gym.
So weigh in at the gym tonight? If I can manage to improve my attitude, I guess. (ETA: I did improve my attitude. 25 minutes of churning away HARD on the elliptical).
Wednesday, March 23, 2011
When to eat?
I've had this conversation before with my friend, Katie.
Here's the thing:
I work lots of hours. The only times I can work out are early mornings (yeah, right), lunch time, and after work. I will NOT be the type to get to the gym at 7am. I do, however, occasionally pop into the gym for 20-30 minutes of cardio during my lunch break (I did this today, in fact. 20 minutes on the arc trainer and a 5 minute cool down walking on the treadmill).
So most of my work outs are in the evenings. I usually finish work at about 7 or 7:30. I don't want to eat right before working out because it makes me feel sick. I don't really want to eat at 7:30ish and wait an hour, because that is just too late to get to the gym for me. What I typically do is eat a late "lunch" and that holds me over until after the gym, when I eat dinner (usually 8:45 or later).
Here's the thing:
I work lots of hours. The only times I can work out are early mornings (yeah, right), lunch time, and after work. I will NOT be the type to get to the gym at 7am. I do, however, occasionally pop into the gym for 20-30 minutes of cardio during my lunch break (I did this today, in fact. 20 minutes on the arc trainer and a 5 minute cool down walking on the treadmill).
So most of my work outs are in the evenings. I usually finish work at about 7 or 7:30. I don't want to eat right before working out because it makes me feel sick. I don't really want to eat at 7:30ish and wait an hour, because that is just too late to get to the gym for me. What I typically do is eat a late "lunch" and that holds me over until after the gym, when I eat dinner (usually 8:45 or later).
Low Energy for Workouts and 179.25lbs
Ugh. I had big plans for my evening workout yesterday. However, I ended up doing less than planned.
10 min on the Arc Trainer at a pretty high resistance and incline
10 min on a treadmill walking and running.
I was sweating and exhausted. I was really REALLY tired before I even got to the gym. I almost considered not going, but couldn't talk myself out of it. Rather than that, I managed to talk myself into half-assing it apparently. I'm glad I went, though.
Today, I'm feeling REALLY low energy. I didn't get much sleep, I woke up with what feels like allergies, and I also woke up in a rush due to hitting snooze--and then turning my alarm off. Made it to work on time, though. Huge cup of coffee in hand, bleary-eyed, and half-listening to my audio book.
Speaking of audio books, how's this for weird:
I always always listen to my little Zune player at the gym. What's playing in it? Whatever book I'm "reading" at the time. Not exactly good for pumping someone up. But here's the thing. When I'm listening to music while exercising, I tend to feel like the time passes really slowly. With the book, I sort of get lost in the story for a bit and then whoa, 10 minutes have passed. I'm an strange bird.
Oh! And as an update, I still weigh 179.25lbs. The big greasy slob disaster wasn't so bad.
And Boyfriend's sister is having a BOY!!!!
10 min on the Arc Trainer at a pretty high resistance and incline
10 min on a treadmill walking and running.
I was sweating and exhausted. I was really REALLY tired before I even got to the gym. I almost considered not going, but couldn't talk myself out of it. Rather than that, I managed to talk myself into half-assing it apparently. I'm glad I went, though.
Today, I'm feeling REALLY low energy. I didn't get much sleep, I woke up with what feels like allergies, and I also woke up in a rush due to hitting snooze--and then turning my alarm off. Made it to work on time, though. Huge cup of coffee in hand, bleary-eyed, and half-listening to my audio book.
Speaking of audio books, how's this for weird:
I always always listen to my little Zune player at the gym. What's playing in it? Whatever book I'm "reading" at the time. Not exactly good for pumping someone up. But here's the thing. When I'm listening to music while exercising, I tend to feel like the time passes really slowly. With the book, I sort of get lost in the story for a bit and then whoa, 10 minutes have passed. I'm an strange bird.
Oh! And as an update, I still weigh 179.25lbs. The big greasy slob disaster wasn't so bad.
And Boyfriend's sister is having a BOY!!!!
Tuesday, March 22, 2011
Cardio and BABIES
Elliptical machines. I love them. I love seeing that little "calories burned" category tick upwards at a steady clip while the sweat on my body trickles downward.
Does anyone else feel like it is a LOT easier to be on an elliptical than...say...ANY other piece of cardio equipment? Jogging on a treadmill wears me the hell out. Perhaps I'm going too fast too soon, but I feel like a few minutes of a run on the treadmill and I'm COUNTING the seconds until I'm done. Stairmaster? Same thing. Arc trainer? Oof.
So I like the elliptical. 20 minutes goes by in a snap. I sweat, I breathe hard, but it's EASIER somehow. And now, when I'm planning what to do in the gym tonight, I think
Cardio--elliptical, duh.
But I think it's time for me to do the things that are harder. So I'm committing to it. Tonight, 15 minutes on the Arc Trainer. Abs exercises. 15 minutes on...the treadmill? The stairmaster? Those two are the hardest for me. I'll give it a go.
Does anyone else feel like it is a LOT easier to be on an elliptical than...say...ANY other piece of cardio equipment? Jogging on a treadmill wears me the hell out. Perhaps I'm going too fast too soon, but I feel like a few minutes of a run on the treadmill and I'm COUNTING the seconds until I'm done. Stairmaster? Same thing. Arc trainer? Oof.
So I like the elliptical. 20 minutes goes by in a snap. I sweat, I breathe hard, but it's EASIER somehow. And now, when I'm planning what to do in the gym tonight, I think
Cardio--elliptical, duh.
But I think it's time for me to do the things that are harder. So I'm committing to it. Tonight, 15 minutes on the Arc Trainer. Abs exercises. 15 minutes on...the treadmill? The stairmaster? Those two are the hardest for me. I'll give it a go.
Post-Guilt Plan
So after a weekend of greasy indulgence and Saturday and Sunday without real exercise (about 7 miles of walking on Sunday, but I don't count that), it feels like I've undone my good hard work. Weight loss (the healthy way) is invariably about diligence with intake and hard work. It's slow, it can be painful, and it requires a LOT of sweat.
And after weeks of this hard work, it feels shameful that I could "undo" it in just a few hours. I know that the amount of calories I ate does not amount to more than a pound of fat (that is, 3500 calories). I have not undone THAT much work. But, I negated one or two days of exercise. I also probably ate 400% of my recommended amount of sodium for the day. Sodium leads to water retention. The ever elusive "water weight" monster is a dreadful thing to fight.
So what is the solution:
1) Water. Water. Water. Today, tomorrow, and the next day, I will drink a lot of water. With any luck, it will help my kidneys excrete all this excess sodium and I'll come back to an even keel.
2) Gym. I went to the gym at lunch for 30 minutes of hard cardio yesteray. That felt good. Hit the cardio hard this week.
3) PROMISE myself not to starve the next few days. I don't want to overcompensate by severe deprivation or fasting.
So far, so good. We'll see when I weigh in on Thursday (the day I consider my "real" weigh in for the week).
And after weeks of this hard work, it feels shameful that I could "undo" it in just a few hours. I know that the amount of calories I ate does not amount to more than a pound of fat (that is, 3500 calories). I have not undone THAT much work. But, I negated one or two days of exercise. I also probably ate 400% of my recommended amount of sodium for the day. Sodium leads to water retention. The ever elusive "water weight" monster is a dreadful thing to fight.
So what is the solution:
1) Water. Water. Water. Today, tomorrow, and the next day, I will drink a lot of water. With any luck, it will help my kidneys excrete all this excess sodium and I'll come back to an even keel.
2) Gym. I went to the gym at lunch for 30 minutes of hard cardio yesteray. That felt good. Hit the cardio hard this week.
3) PROMISE myself not to starve the next few days. I don't want to overcompensate by severe deprivation or fasting.
So far, so good. We'll see when I weigh in on Thursday (the day I consider my "real" weigh in for the week).
Monday, March 21, 2011
Where does this guilt even come from?
Here's something I learned after the weekend of doom:
1) Eating shitty food after a week (weeks?) of healthy food makes me feel emotionally bad.
2) Feeling like I've undone a lot of my hard work makes me feel like I want to give up. Or rather, that trying so hard is not worth it when it's so easy and fast to fuck things up.
3) Shitty food after weeks of healthy food makes me feel physically bad.
-my body feels sluggish and gross despite plenty of sleep
-my body feels like it's...umm...trying to get rid of this food asap.
Ew.
1) Eating shitty food after a week (weeks?) of healthy food makes me feel emotionally bad.
2) Feeling like I've undone a lot of my hard work makes me feel like I want to give up. Or rather, that trying so hard is not worth it when it's so easy and fast to fuck things up.
3) Shitty food after weeks of healthy food makes me feel physically bad.
-my body feels sluggish and gross despite plenty of sleep
-my body feels like it's...umm...trying to get rid of this food asap.
Ew.
Weekend Eating Fuck-ups.
Okay. Despite the tone of this post, I had a really fun time at the zoo yesterday. It's when I went to log the day's calories that I began to despair.
Boyfriend and I went to the zoo with his sister, brother-in-law, niece, mom, and two family friends. I ate a bagel with light cream cheese for breakfast. That put me at ~350 calories consumed for the day. With about 1200 calories left to consume, you'd think I'd be okay, right?
No, goddamnit. At the zoo, my choices were pizza, fries, ham/cheeseburgers, and hot dogs. They all sucked, and I went for a hot dog (The line lady asked: "sauerkraut, peppers, and onions?" And I mumbled "yes." WHAT THE FUCK, TERESA!?!?). Boyfriend got french fries and I ate half of them absentmindedly. (?!?). I was still hungry. Brother-in-law had gotten an extra cheeseburger, so he offered it to boyfriend, who offered half of it to me (still hungry), and I ate it.
Boyfriend and I went to the zoo with his sister, brother-in-law, niece, mom, and two family friends. I ate a bagel with light cream cheese for breakfast. That put me at ~350 calories consumed for the day. With about 1200 calories left to consume, you'd think I'd be okay, right?
No, goddamnit. At the zoo, my choices were pizza, fries, ham/cheeseburgers, and hot dogs. They all sucked, and I went for a hot dog (The line lady asked: "sauerkraut, peppers, and onions?" And I mumbled "yes." WHAT THE FUCK, TERESA!?!?). Boyfriend got french fries and I ate half of them absentmindedly. (?!?). I was still hungry. Brother-in-law had gotten an extra cheeseburger, so he offered it to boyfriend, who offered half of it to me (still hungry), and I ate it.
Saturday, March 19, 2011
Is a calorie just a calorie?
I've been concerned about intake a lot throughout this process.
First of all, the most important part for weight loss is that I should burn more than I eat. Okay, fine.
But how much does it matter if I'm eating too much fat? Or too many carbs? I rarely get enough protein. Recommended amount of protein a day for me is anywhere from 50-150g a day. I'm often lucky to hit 50 because I just don't eat a lot of meat. I've been selecting protein-laden yogurt for snacks and I've toyed with whey protein.
So how important is it, anyway? I take vitamins. I eat lots of fruits and vegetables (lots and lots). And I'm pretty sure (since I'm not sick) that my body isn't starving for any particular macronutrient.
The reason why I ask is because I don't think I could live a life on egg white tortilla rolls and chicken breast on salad. Sometimes, I want something greasy. Like Chick Fil-A nuggets. If I'm eating something pretty unhealthy, but I'm still under my calorie count for the day (that is, somewhere between 1500-1700), is that all that matters?
First of all, the most important part for weight loss is that I should burn more than I eat. Okay, fine.
But how much does it matter if I'm eating too much fat? Or too many carbs? I rarely get enough protein. Recommended amount of protein a day for me is anywhere from 50-150g a day. I'm often lucky to hit 50 because I just don't eat a lot of meat. I've been selecting protein-laden yogurt for snacks and I've toyed with whey protein.
So how important is it, anyway? I take vitamins. I eat lots of fruits and vegetables (lots and lots). And I'm pretty sure (since I'm not sick) that my body isn't starving for any particular macronutrient.
The reason why I ask is because I don't think I could live a life on egg white tortilla rolls and chicken breast on salad. Sometimes, I want something greasy. Like Chick Fil-A nuggets. If I'm eating something pretty unhealthy, but I'm still under my calorie count for the day (that is, somewhere between 1500-1700), is that all that matters?
Friday, March 18, 2011
Starting Photos
I took these photos on a day that I weighed in at 180. I'm sure I'm making funny faces, but I promised myself that I'd only take one photo per "angle" once I got the distance from the camera and the self timer right. I didn't want to pick photos that were the most attractive. One shot and done. So here they are. Forgive any funny faces.
Thursday, March 17, 2011
Gym Routine
Today, I weighed in at 178.75 lbs. BMI: 30.7.
This puts my current total weight loss at 6.25lbs.
I'm very skeptical of this weight. I know that weight fluctuates day to day, so maybe this was just a weird "low" day.
Anyway! On to the real topic of this post. When incorporating resistance/weight training into a gym routine, I needed to decide how many days a week that I wanted to do weights. I go to the gym 4-5 days a week, so I decided that I would lift 4 days a week. I then needed to decide if my weights routine would be a total body or isolated muscle groups plan. I decided on muscle groups. This is because it makes planning what exercises to do on each day much easier. If I find significant evidence that it's better to do total body, I might reconsider.
This puts my current total weight loss at 6.25lbs.
I'm very skeptical of this weight. I know that weight fluctuates day to day, so maybe this was just a weird "low" day.
Anyway! On to the real topic of this post. When incorporating resistance/weight training into a gym routine, I needed to decide how many days a week that I wanted to do weights. I go to the gym 4-5 days a week, so I decided that I would lift 4 days a week. I then needed to decide if my weights routine would be a total body or isolated muscle groups plan. I decided on muscle groups. This is because it makes planning what exercises to do on each day much easier. If I find significant evidence that it's better to do total body, I might reconsider.
Fat Girl at the Gym
So joining a gym in February is a weird thing. Lots of people that made their new year's resolutions are already dropping off. As such, they will often offer a new lowered rate in February (about $15/month lower) and waive the introductory fees. Also, if you include a second/third/nth person with your signup, they get a lowered fee. I did this as a Valentine's day gift for myself and for the boyfriend.
Fortunately, he's a wonderful person and was excited about it. He didn't interpret it as: "Happy Valentine's day, love. You're fat."
So here's what sucks about joining a gym:
1) There are lots of skinny people. The skinny women wear tiny shorts and little tops. If you join after the new year's drop off, there aren't as many people that are...you know...fluffy. It feels discouraging to see people that are already so thin and fit working WAY harder than me. It makes me worry if I can really work as hard as I need to to reach my goals. Also, because I feel like the fat girl at the gym, it seems like people are looking at me, thinking: "Aww, good for the fat girl." or "About time, chubby."
Fortunately, he's a wonderful person and was excited about it. He didn't interpret it as: "Happy Valentine's day, love. You're fat."
So here's what sucks about joining a gym:
1) There are lots of skinny people. The skinny women wear tiny shorts and little tops. If you join after the new year's drop off, there aren't as many people that are...you know...fluffy. It feels discouraging to see people that are already so thin and fit working WAY harder than me. It makes me worry if I can really work as hard as I need to to reach my goals. Also, because I feel like the fat girl at the gym, it seems like people are looking at me, thinking: "Aww, good for the fat girl." or "About time, chubby."
Wednesday, March 16, 2011
180.75lbs.
I weigh 180.75lbs. BMI is 31.0
Last post was about where I started and how I got there. This one is about how I got started when I decided I wanted to lose weight.
I started "being careful" with what I ate. I lost a couple of pounds (about 3). But, I wanted to be FIT, not just thin. So I got a gym membership, and I've been working HARD in the gym for a month. I spent the first three weeks of that month "being careful" with my intake. I refused to count calories. I lost a little weight. About a pound.
After the third week, I decided to keep a log of everything that I eat versus how much I burn. But, I wanted to know how many calories I was burning without having to "check in" on a website and input my every activity. What's the solution?
A BODYBUGG! Yes! It is a heart rate monitor that keeps track of your movement, skin temp, skin conductivity, and it rearranges your furniture and tells you when you smell nice. It's expensive and requires a paid subscription to their online whatever-the-hell. Never mind.
A quick Google search of "cheaper alternative to bodybugg" left me with a few scattered heart rate monitors (complete with a required chest band that only squeezes your back fat into lumps half as badly as their competitors! or a watch that resembles a calculator watch--no chest band and at least 60% accurate!), none of which I found appealing.
Last post was about where I started and how I got there. This one is about how I got started when I decided I wanted to lose weight.
I started "being careful" with what I ate. I lost a couple of pounds (about 3). But, I wanted to be FIT, not just thin. So I got a gym membership, and I've been working HARD in the gym for a month. I spent the first three weeks of that month "being careful" with my intake. I refused to count calories. I lost a little weight. About a pound.
After the third week, I decided to keep a log of everything that I eat versus how much I burn. But, I wanted to know how many calories I was burning without having to "check in" on a website and input my every activity. What's the solution?
A BODYBUGG! Yes! It is a heart rate monitor that keeps track of your movement, skin temp, skin conductivity, and it rearranges your furniture and tells you when you smell nice. It's expensive and requires a paid subscription to their online whatever-the-hell. Never mind.
A quick Google search of "cheaper alternative to bodybugg" left me with a few scattered heart rate monitors (complete with a required chest band that only squeezes your back fat into lumps half as badly as their competitors! or a watch that resembles a calculator watch--no chest band and at least 60% accurate!), none of which I found appealing.
Should I? Could I? Have a blog?
Inspired by my good friend, I have decided to try having a blog. So, if you are currently reading this, that means that I finally told someone about my top secret blog and this entry is probably old. My initial inspiration to resurrect this blog is to keep track of my weight loss. I might discuss/share my other hobbies and ponderings but I don't yet have plans for anything other than getting fit.
Here's my story: I always struggled with weight. And by "struggled with" I mean "was unhappy with but not enough to put any real effort into changing it." I have no idea what I weighed when I left for college, but my weight throughout college fluctuated anywhere from 160-ish to 180ish. At 5'4" this made me a decidedly overweight person. Some would call me "curvy" by looking at me, but I was dreadfully aware that according to my BMI (an antiquated standard, I know) I was obese. I just shelved that thought. I'm sure you understand.
Here's my story: I always struggled with weight. And by "struggled with" I mean "was unhappy with but not enough to put any real effort into changing it." I have no idea what I weighed when I left for college, but my weight throughout college fluctuated anywhere from 160-ish to 180ish. At 5'4" this made me a decidedly overweight person. Some would call me "curvy" by looking at me, but I was dreadfully aware that according to my BMI (an antiquated standard, I know) I was obese. I just shelved that thought. I'm sure you understand.
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