Ten Days worth of Progress

Photo 1 taken 8/20/10, photo two taken 8/30/10.

Progress: Another Terrible Photo

(I wish I had a big mirror somewhere else in my house where I could take a photo. The light in this area sucks. )

Meal Plan - August 23-28 2010 REVISED 8-30-10

I'll be sharing my meal plans for each week here, and I'll come back at the end of the week to update them with how I actually did.

MONDAY:

• BREAKFAST Lower sugar oatmeal and 100 calorie yogurt
• SNACK Granola bar
  
• LUNCH Vegan soup
  
• SNACK TBA (FIG BAR)
  
• DINNER Cauliflower Pizza
  

TUESDAY:

• BREAKFAST Low sugar oatmeal and 100 calorie yogurt
  
• SNACK granola bar
  
• LUNCH Healthy Choice TV dinner
  
• SNACK popcorn (GRANOLA BAR)
  
• DINNER Faux Chicken wrap and vegetables
  

WEDNESDAY:

• BREAKFAST: Protein Shake (OATMEAL)
  
• SNACK: 100 Calorie Yogurt
  
• LUNCH: Vegan Soup or Salad
  
• SNACK: TBA
  
• DINNER: Giant Salad (SHELLS)
  

THURSDAY:

• BREAKFAST: Oatmeal
  
• SNACK: Yogurt
  
• LUNCH: Vegan Soup or Salad
  
• SNACK: Granola bar
  
• DINNER: Pad Thai with Prawns and Tofu
  

FRIDAY:

• BREAKFAST: Shake
  
• SNACK: 100 calorie Yogurt
  
• LUNCH: Healthy Choice TV dinner
  
• SNACK: Fruit
  
• DINNER: Fish Sandwiches (SUSHI)
  

SATURDAY:

• BREAKFAST: Oatmeal (SHAKE)
  
• SNACK: Granola Bar
  
• LUNCH: Veggie Sandwich (PANCAKES)
  
• SNACK: Cucumbers
  
• DINNER: Dinner Out (TACOS at BAJA)
  

SUNDAY:

• BREAKFAST: Waffles (OATMEAL)
  
• SNACK: tba (GRANOLA BAR)
  
• LUNCH: Faux Chix nuggets and veggies (TV DINNER)
  
• SNACK: popcorn (GRANOLA BAR)
  
• DINNER:Shells and tomato sauce (PAD THAI)
  

Bad Days and Expectations

For about two weeks I had hit a really great stride where I felt like everything was going really well. I had changed my eating patterns and felt much less hungry AND less tempted by crappy food or emotional eating. I was running twice a day and taking long walks. I was feeling like I was seeing results.

This week, I feel like that's all a distant memory. What troubles me is why.

I have gone a bit off plan - just a bit. I ate a little too much for dinner on Wednesday night. Today I ate two pieces of small bread with my soup for dinner. Tuesday I ate two granola bars in the afternoon that I didn't need simply due to the fact that I was feeling crappy. Tonight, I actually turned down Rubio's (my favorite fast food) knowing that it was just too many calories to be worth it.

I did 5 miles on Sunday, 2 on Monday, and 4 on Tuesday. Due to soreness in my legs I took Wednesday off, and today, I did another 4 miles.

But...overall...really not any huge problems. Earlier in the week, I fit in to a size 14 dress and it actually looks good. It's...tight...but, I like things fairly tight anyway, and the style works.

So, why do I feel so crappy?

I think I know why, and the reason really freaks me out.

I'm incredibly impatient and obsessive compulsive. Last week, I did my first two mile run on the elliptical machine. It was incredible - knowing that my body can do that. However, this week, I feel like I should keep pushing - that I now need to go 2.5 miles, or 3 miles. I know that I have it in me. I know I can do it. And because I know I can, I feel like I should. I think about how many more calories can be burned, how many more steps I can take.

I think about how the little things can help so much. Running an extra 20 minutes, which in the scale of things, is nothing, burns 300 more calories. That's my entire lunch. Skipping snacks saves calories. These things bother the hell out of me.

I realize that this is incredibly dangerous thinking. The last time I lost a large amount of weight, when I was in high school, I did it through obsessive compulsive restriction of food. It was a bad time for me, and I felt like my food was the only thing I could control. (A story that's far too often true). Once things started clearing, high school was getting closer to being over, and I got a little bit of self confidence, I went back to eating like crap. And, I gained. I have continued to gain since then.

I worry that my obsessive compulsive behavior will doom me to failure because I won't be able to keep up with my own expectations.

Training Schedule - August 23-28 2010

I'll be posting my training schedule here, and then coming back at the end of the week revise the post with how I actually did.


MONDAY: 20 min AM elliptical Level 2, 30min PM elliptical Level 3

TUESDAY: 20min AM elliptical, 2 miles Elliptical various interval PM, 25 min upper body fitness

WEDNESDAY: 25 min fitness AM, 2.5 mile walk PM

THURSDAY: 20min AM elliptical Level 2, 2 miles Elliptical various interval PM

FRIDAY: 20 min elliptical Level 2, 25 min fitness workout

SATURDAY: 2.5 mile walk, 25 min various fitness workout

SUNDAY: Tennis

Adjusting to my New Stomach - Case 1: Gin and Tonic

Ugh.

Anyone who goes out with me knows that I could handle my alcohol pretty well. While of course, after a few I get a bit slurry and loud, I never got sick, never did anything I regretted, and could drink gin and tonic and whiskey sours all night while my guy friends drink beers. Was a good life.

Things have changed.

Last night, I had three Gin and Tonics separately, with time in between. I knew after the first one I was already affected. After the second one, I was completely buzzed, and the third one did me IN. That? Is NOT usual. And, the drunk was different than I've ever previously felt. I was actually starting to feel a bit nauseous, tired and moody. It wasn't cool.

While driving home, I realized I needed to eat something. My new eating habits are really great in some cases, but totally killed me in this one. I only had a granola bar for dinner, because I just wasn't hungry for more before we left. Obviously, that contributed to my "lightweight" status. If there would have been restaurants open, I would have gotten pizza (EEEEEEEHHHH) but instead, we came home and I made Faux chicken nuggets and FRENCH FRIES (EEEEEHHHHHHH). At 2am.

Baaaaaaad.

Oh well. I'm chalking it up to a lesson about my new digestive system.

GoWear Fit - A Life Changing Tool!

I was reading through some weight loss blogs a few weeks ago when I came across someone discussing their activity tracking device. I think this particular blogger used a Body Bugg, but nevertheless I started looking up these trackers with interest and found the one I inevitably purchased, the GoWear fit.
In this phase of my weight loss journey I felt like it was really important to track EVERYTHING. The Drummer sometimes laughs at me because on any walk we go on, I use CardioTrainer (a distance/pace/calorie tracking and motivating tool for my Droid Eris) and keep track of what we did. But, when I go home and track all of that information on DailyMile, it makes me feel great. Before I joined Weight Watchers, I carried a small notebook to chart all food I ate in the day. It's so easy to make up stuff in your head, I wanted to be accountable. That's a big step for me.

So, reading about the GoWear Fit was interesting because it was another way to get an accurate track of what my body was doing all day. The GoWear tracks these things:

• Caloric Output. The GoWear tracks how many calories I burn in a day based on a few key measurements: motion, steps, galvanic skin response, skin temperature and heat flux.
  
• Physical Activity. The device tracks how intense my physical activity is - and since it is on me all day, that includes even things like walking up a big flight of stairs, or a big hill.
  
• Steps. Just like a pedometer, the GoWear tracks how many steps I take in a day.
  
• Sleep Efficiency. This is the coolest feature. The device tracks my sleep: it knows how long I'm laying down and how long I'm sleeping. It's interesting to wake up in the morning and plug it in to see where I was awake and where I was sleeping. This has also been the most startling of the discoveries - the amount of sleep I'm getting is nowhere near what I should be getting.
  

All of this information is compiled on a profile chart for me, where I can see everything. Additionally, using their web interface, I can chart my calories, so the interface can calculate what my caloric deficit is. I've chosen to use Weight Watchers instead to track food, but knowing the amount of calories I'm burning, as well as the intensity and my sleep - I'm in much better control over what my body is doing.

The device is a little weird to wear. I don't FEEL it really on my arm, but It is noticeable and people ask questions. I don't mind talking about it, though, because I really believe in the benefits.

Weight Watchers

A good friend of mine has been trying to get me to try Weight Watchers for quite awhile. She's recently lost her baby weight (and then some) using WW; she loves it. I decided a month ago, when I started to really take control of what I was eating, to try the online service. I am not ambitious enough now to go to meetings - so I like that I could sign up online and get so much of their great services without having to go to the weekly meetings.

So far I really like it. I haven't gotten to the point yet that I track every day, and I need to, because It's really nice to have that accountability. Previously, I had been tracking my caloric intake with a little notebook in my pocket all day. It works, but it sort of sucks :) The idea of points is actually much easier for me and I feel I'm MORE accountable.

I get 30 points a day, currently, based on my weight. The points change as your weight changes. Additionally, I get 35 weekly points, which can be used if I go over 30 points in a day. Those 35 points can be used any day of the week. Finally, when I do exercise, I input it in to the system as Activity. Then, it generates points I get for that activity: example, 10 minutes on the Elliptical is 2 Activity Points. So, Since I usually do 30min, I get 6 additional points for the week to use if I need to. That's in addition to the weekly 35 additional points. So, you can really feel in charge of what's going in and out of your body. I have never gotten up to my 30 points on any day. I kind of like going to bed knowing that I have 5 extra points that I didn't use. :)

Aside from tracking your points and activity, the Weight Watchers interface also has fantastic tools for both finding points in your favorite foods and restaurant foods, and great recipes using certain ingredients. Love.

This week I'll post a sample of what my daily food intake on Weight Watchers looks like.

Me, 8.19.10

Please excuse this TERRIBLE photo taken with my Android. I am a professional photographer and am embarrassed to display something like this but it was a quick snap just to show what I look like, today. I FEEL thinner. I can see the weight loss in my face and arms and a little around my hips.