Jumping the Gun

Normally I wouldn't post anything right before a weigh-in, but I've decided to do just that today.  Here's why.  My friend Mandy mentioned the need to remind herself that no matter what her weight today, she has worked the program and done what she's supposed to.  I'm doing that too.

First off, I did weigh at home this morning, and it showed a little gain.  I could let this get me down, but I'm not going to.  Instead, I'm going to learn from it.  I did what I was supposed to do this week, and I added in exercise.  So why the gain, you wonder?

Here's my theory.  I ate out several times this week, and I tracked everything and didn't go over my Points allowance.  So I thought.  What I've decided is that I must have just misjudged my restaurant servings.  It's the only explanation.  I really enjoy going out to eat (don't we all?), but I need to cut it down a little if I can, at least while I'm trying to lose weight.

The hubs and I met up with about 16 other people for dinner at the new Japanese restaurant on Monday.  It was lots of fun.  Judging from all the butter slathered all over everything, I'm guessing this could have been a contributing factor to my gain.

Wish I'd gotten a photo of the flaming volcano onion!

Where's the rice?  P.S. - That's my husband's beer, not mine!

This was my plate (before the little bit of beef was added).  I actually did order steamed rice, but for some reason it didn't get delivered.  I didn't ask for it, and still enjoyed the meal without the extra carbs/calories/points.  

Sunday, our family went to a late lunch/early dinner at Mamacita's Mexican Restaurant.  Afterward, we were walking to the car and I couldn't help noticing how warm and perfect the weather was.  We got in the car and I said, "It's so beautiful outside, it makes me wish I could just walk home from here."  Mike stopped the car and said, "Then walk home!"  He was joking in an "I-dare-you" sort of way.  I looked at my shoes (not workout shoes, but Skechers), and figured they'd work just fine.  So I hopped out and hoofed it on home.  Now, it's not really all that far from there to my house -- maybe 1.5 miles -- but it was a great feeling.  I was doing something spontaneous, just because it would be good for me, got a little exercise, and got to enjoy the sunshine.  It's hard to believe it was around 80 degrees just a few days ago, and right now it's like 16 here!  

I have another friend who just got certified to teach Zumba, and that will start on Monday.  I'm going to go try it out and will let you know how that goes!

To close, I just want to say that I probably will see a gain today at Weight Watchers, but it's not because I didn't try.  I just made some mistakes somewhere in my estimations, I think, and I want to learn from this and keep going for more losses coming up.  Not gonna let this get me down, but I'm also not going to take any gain lightly!

Confessions of a (Non) Stick Figure

Yes, my friends, I'm still here!  I've just been struggling the last couple of weeks.  Initially it really worried me.  I started to doubt my ability to follow through on making changes for a healthier and, yes, thinner me. I started to wonder if I could actually ever get to the point where this would be my lifestyle and not just a diet.  I began to doubt myself.

Now, don't get me wrong -- I realize this has been yet another setback, and I don't like it.  However, I also realize that I'm fighting it out with life-long habits I've developed that did me no good yet still had a powerful hold on me.  And sometimes they still do have a hold on me.

I missed my weigh-in last week.  I was busy, but I could have made it if I'd really wanted to.  So tomorrow I will go to my Weight Watchers meeting and take my lumps like a grown-up.  I will do a better job planning, and I'll stop at the grocery store to make sure I'm all stocked up with healthy and easy options to go to.

It won't be pretty, folks, I promise you that.  But I'll report it honestly, and then I will get busy doing what I have to do to wrestle with my issues so that I can give myself what I deserve.

Now, that being said, I would like to add that it wasn't all bad.  I tried Zumba!  To give you the full effect of how that went, I'm whipping out my awe-inspiring artistic skills.  Now, before you wanna-be artists ask, I can't tell you my secrets to creating perfect form like this.  It's just a gift.  You're either born with it or you're not.  Aaaaaand, apparently I'm not.

I now present "Stick Figure's Fitness Adventures."

First of all, the Zumba class was held in a shopping center, and the building was windows upon windows, to give any passers-by a nice view of the Zumba gyrations.

Despite realizing I was the biggest one there (you know you always check for that too), I was glad to see that everyone was pretty much in my age range, about 35-45 years old.  Onward we go!  I realized immediately my lack of coordination, but I didn't let that stop me.  I just kept moving, pausing to apologize now and then to anyone I might have bumped into.

Wobbly legs?  Check.
Sweating buckets?  Check.
Out of breath?  Check.

But I did it!  I didn't stop once, and I felt like I'd really gotten a great workout and accomplished something new!

We were done, and the Zumba instructor pipes up with this little gem.  She says, "You know, actually, this Zumba routine was originally designed for senior citizens."

(The Devil's Skinny Sister)

That's just fabulous news!  (Read: sarcasm)

It was still a fun experience, despite feeling a little like a doofus for thinking that the old-lady routine was challenging.  In fact, I might go again tomorrow night!

Hot 100 Update and Weekly Weigh-In

It's not a good number, folks, but here's the honest truth:  I gained FOUR LOUSY POUNDS this week!

I had four -- count 'em, FOUR -- holiday events this week alone.  So I guess I gained a pound at each event.  I wasn't even going to weigh in yesterday, but I figured I can't hide from it, so I went ahead and weighed.  Oh, and I didn't fall down dead as a result.  So that's where I stand, and it's not even Christmas Day yet.

Lest you think I'm feeling defeated, I'll tell you I'm not.  I'm not quitting.  I'm planning for moderation through the next couple of days.  I plan to have some of my old once-a-year favorites, but not go insane with it.  I'm going to get my weight off.  It might not be this week, but I'm not out of the game yet!

So here's my Hot 100 update:

1.  Lose 15-plus pounds by the end of the year / end of the challenge.  It's not looking good, though my weight is still down during this challenge.  Just not sure I'm going to hit the goal.  We shall see!

2.  Get more sleep.  As usual, it kind of just depends on the night.  Lately I seem to have more trouble, with all the items on my to-do list dancing in my head after the lights go out, but sometimes I get lucky and drift right off to sleep.

3.  Start taking vitamins.  See #2 - hit or miss.

4.  Make a plan for eating and exercising over the holidays and stick to it.  Well, clearly this week got away from me.  Correction -- I didn't stay on top of my game this week and gained weight.  Too many opportunities to be off my routine got the best of me.  I'm not happy about it, but at the same time, I'm not freaked out about it either.  I know the way this works and what I need to do.  I'm not going to moan about gaining weight and having no idea why.  I also know that I'll be able to lose this little bit of holiday weight, and I know how to do it.  It might not be the most fun in the world, but it's a pretty simple theory.

Merry Christmas!

Back to Our Regularly Scheduled Program

So yesterday was yet another day off program, despite my promise that it wouldn't be.  But today I'm back on track!

This is scary though.  Thursday - Monday off the wagon = a gain of 5.2 pounds!  Are you kidding me?!?  I deserve a gain, for sure, but I can't imagine what I ate to equal more than an extra 3500 calories a day!  That's the math, right?

All day today I've done great -- healthy food choices, smaller portions, low sodium, took my vitamins, flushing out with rivers of water.  There will be exercise today as well.  For a change.  I also wrote down everything I put in my mouth, and I've tried to think about better ways to deal with stress.

I've had a setback, no doubt.  I am disappointed that I am going to have to re-lose those pounds, but I'm confident I can do it.  My hope is to learn from this and remember this the next time I'm feeling on the edge of losing control.  I'm not going to beat myself up about it.  It's not productive.

On another note, something kind of cool happened at a kiddie party I took my three-year-old son to a week and a half ago.  While we were there, he had this big slice of cake, and I didn't get any.  He ate a little of it, and then he brought the plate to me when he was done.  At the time, I was speaking to a friend and just mindlessly took the plate.  I wasn't nibbling on it (only because I was chatting), but I could smell it (yum), and it looked amazing - chocolate cake with dark, fudgy frosting.

My friend Nicki was at the party with her little guy too.  She has hit Lifetime status before at Weight Watchers, so she knows what I'm dealing with.  Anyway, she saw what happened, and went up to my little dude.  I heard her whisper to him, "Are you finished eating your cake?"  He nodded yes.  Then she swooped in, grabbed the cake from me, and said, "Intervention!" and tossed the plate into the trash!  Isn't that cool?

Clearly, this happened several days BEFORE the big backslide, but I thought it was great.  Where was she the last five days?  Guess I should have invited her over for a slumber party to save me from myself.

I'm back on track now, and it was surprisingly easy to do once I made up my mind for real.  All I had to do was do it.  And also that was the hard part.  So here I am, back on track, and feeling much better today than I have in several days, physically and emotionally.

Oh, yeah, and I'm still gonna knock that 25 pounds on its butt.  Not on Thursday, I guess, but it's just around the corner, so watch out!

Four Days of Debauchery

Bad, bad, so very bad.

I was trying to be mindful, but I slipped up.  I've had four days of extremely unhealthy eating and overeating.  Not good.

I'm finished eating for the day today, and tomorrow will be back on track.

It was so extreme that I feel quite certain I will NOT get my 25-pound goal on Thursday, but will instead have a gain.  I plan to undo as much damage as I can in the coming days by drinking lots of water, choosing healthy foods in small portions, and exercising.

I will turn it around!