Bloggy (and non bloggy) Inspiration

I've had a few things that are really sticking with me this week from blogs and magazines.

1. In reading Runner's World, they had a 15 strength workout using nothing but a stability ball. I've been thinking I need to get back to weight training for months now but haven't had the energy to work out a plan. So I tore this out and started it today. It's tough enough to feel like a challenge but in 4-6 weeks I'll be ready to move on to something more challenging and will hopefully be ready to plan something more in depth.

2. Embracing hard - A cake for a wife blogged about this and it really kind of stuck. I think it did for a lot of people, lots of blogging about it this week LOL. And it's so true. Very often I call it in as Jillian would say and that just isn't going to cut it if I want to reach my goals.

3. I Quit...Again discussing a Month to live. I've been wanting to cut the soda out but having a really hard time with it. This post made me go HMMMMMM. I could probably do this for a week. So today is my last day for soda. Tomorrow I give it up for a week. Hopefully that will be enough to give it up for good, except for the occasional one.

4. My sister wants us to do a half marathon in October. I want to do a half marathon in October and my mother is contemplating doing it as well. Perhaps even my father and youngest sister. That just sounds really cool to me, a family event!!! But it means a lot of work given my propensity for injury.

I'm hoping that these motivational bits will keep me pushing for the next couple of weeks. I'm aiming for my 10% by the end of February - that's 5 pounds and totally doable!!!

Weigh In

Well I didn't lose the 2.6 but I did lose 0.6 Putting me at a solid 13 pounds total since I started WW in August.

Weigh In

It was awesome this week. Down 3 pounds!!!! I'm aiming for down another 2.5 for next week to hit 15 pounds total and get another 5 pound star.

Plus I've been tagged by Mary Beth over at Boo Bear's Place Seven Random Facts about me.

1. I have a degree in Psychology but work as an interior decorator.

2. I HATE doing dishes but love doing laundry.

3. If I could hibernate all winter I would, but I choose to live in a place where you can count on at least a week or two of -40 degree weather during every 5 month winter we have.

4. I hate wearing shoes and socks.

5. I love going to the movies by myself.

6. My daughter was 8 weeks old at my wedding, which was a full wedding with 150 guests.

7. My ideal afternoon would be spent curled up on the sofa or in bed devouring a book from beginning to end.

I'm supposed to tag some more people too. But instead I'm just going to throw it out there to anyone who might be reading. I'd love to learn more about all of you.

A Great Week!!

It really has been a great week. I've only used 13 of my flex points. I got workouts in, I tracked everything. And I've lost weight, how much will come tomorrow.

But I realized that there are areas for improvement so goals for the upcoming week is to meet my fruit/veggie minimums this week, EVERY SINGLE DAY.

Last Tuesday

I ha used up all of my flex points and was still going strong. This week with my new accountability I have used up 4 of my flex points. And I feel fine Not all that tempted by junk food. I'm so happy this is working even a little bit. And I can't wait to weigh in on Saturday.

It's working!!!!!

Yesterday I was out at a flea market almost the whole day (as a vendor) and I could see the bags of chips on the wall across the way and boy were they calling to me. But I resisted and pulled out my apple and peanut butter sandwhich that I brought with me. Last week I wouldn't have even bothered bringing the lunch. Instead I stayed within my budgeted points for the day even with a nibbly evening.

Today my belly has been growling non stop it seems but I have been sticking to the snacks I brought and although the chocolate has whispered my name a few times, it hasn't been screaming and I've been able to drown it out.

I'm so glad I figured out the problem and found a solution!!

ACCOUNTABILITY

I never quite realized how much I need outside intervention to keep me focused on goals. It's really quite sad actually. I thought that weighing in every week would keep me on track throughout the week. Who wants their WW leader seeing a gain on the scale? Worked for a few weeks and 10 pounds but then it didn't seem to matter anymore.

I thought buying the 3 month tracker and writing down everything that crossed my lips would help. NOPE. Didn't keep me from eating chocolate bars (and not the regular sized ones), chips and going over my points and using up my flex points by Tuesday (week runs Sat-Sun).

Today I weighed in +1.6 pounds. Exactly what I was down last week. I expected it and it wasn't nearly disappointing enough. But as I sat through the meeting I wondered what would help me get focused on this journey and realized that I need someone looking over my shoulder. So I'm going to work with my strengths and build up my weaknesses. I asked my leader if she would look at my tracker every week and give me a little kick in the pants if I'm falling off track. And I think that is what will get me going.

Also, I want to be a little more present in the BLBE so I'm saying right here, right now that I vow to comment on at least one of Team Lynne's member blogs per day. That's a big commitment from someone trying to cut out a lot of her internet time :)

Next week you'll hear me shouting from the rooftops about my fantastic loss. Off to make some soup for my lunches this week!

Not a great couple of days

for staying in my points but I have been tracking everything whether it's pretty or not.

3 month tracker

Last night I sat down with my 3 month tracker to take a look at everything it offers. It's actually a pretty cool tool. Definitely has more than the regular weekly trackers, tracking your weightloss in graph format and boy do I love a graph LOL.

It's still set up in weeks, so I dated everyday for this week and am determined to stay on track with it. I'm hoping at the very least this will show me the difference in my loss between weeks where I tracked and weeks that I didn't.

Weigh in

I weighed in this morning down 1.6. I'm pretty pleased with that. I was hoping to be down 2 but I didn't track and I indulged a bit more than I should have. I'm not sure what's holding me back from tracking. I know that I do better when I track and I don't really like to write down things I "shouldn't" be eating. So if I have a "bad" snack I stop tracking for the day. I really need to get back in the habit of tracking so today I bought a 3 month tracker in the hopes that it will help.

Progress

OK so I can't say that I've been 100% on avoiding the morning snacks but I can say that I have been better overall and the goal has made me much more conscious of my snacks.

In the pursuit of my goal of dropping 2 pounds this week I submit this plan for the rest of the evening: Nothing else to eat. I had a good filling dinner, a post dinner snack and a cup of hot cocoa. There is nothing else I need besides water. To ensure this, I'm off to brush my teeth. So there. :)

Resolutions...

Everyone has made at least one of those grand sweeping New Years Resolutions.

I'm going to lose 50 pounds.
I'm going to exercise an hour every day.
I'm never going to eat junk food again.

I've made a few myself. Fortunately I've learned a few things and now set realistic goals instead of sweeping resolutions. This year is no exception. I have financial goals, work goals, home goals and of course health and fitness goals. But since this is a weight loss blog I'll only post those.

1. Reach my goal weight. This is only 19 pounds away and so I think a year is a totally reasonable time frame to achieve this.
2. Run a 5K this summer in under 30 minutes. I can do the 30 minutes right now on the treadmill so again a totally doable goal if I stick with my workouts.
3. Get to the point where I'm only having "treats" once or twice a week. But I'm tackling this slowly. For January the goal is to limit my morning snack to fruits and veggies. In February, it will be to not have "treats" before 3pm. And so on until I meet my goal.

I'm pretty pleased with this but definitely open to feedback.