Watching and Weighting...

151.5

Whew!

Nothing lost, but nothing gained, surprisingly.

Several people have commented on the fact that I weigh myself daily.


It isn't obsessive or a nuisance or anything else negative.


Nor does it spring from special bravery or determination.


As I said in the beginning, I rarely stepped on a scale when I was happy with the way I looked in my clothes. When I was thinner I never monitored my weight except by how my clothes fit. If things felt a little snug, I would step on a scale to see how much I weighed to determine how much I needed to cut back and/or exercise and then I would go back to ignoring it again. I suppose I would step on it every two or three weeks just out of curiosity, but no more often than that.


When I am trying to lose weight I do make it a habit to weigh myself daily. I keep that number in my head when I want to eat something I shouldn't. Either to say to myself: "Okay, you've lost 3 lbs since Tuesday. Don't eat that candy bar. It will set you back."


"Or, you're up 3 lbs since Tuesday. You can't afford to skip your workout today."


I think it is important to know if I've hit a plateau. Then I recognize that I need to change something else.


Weighing myself daily helps keep me on track and encourages me to develop routines and stay disciplined.


Someone suggested I track my progress using a tape measure, instead. Personally, I find those numbers to be far more discouraging than the numbers on the scale. I don't even want to know the circumference of my thighs or of my arms. I don't want to know exactly how many inches it is around my abdomen or my hips. I can look in the mirror when I step out of the shower and tell, whatever it is, it's too much! And that's enough....


I will know I am back to the right measurements when my clothes fit again.


I ate my second egg roll from the other night for breakfast. I know, not the best choice, but it was good....and around noon I had about half a cup of steamed rice (also left over from my chinese indulgence Thursday). Some time during the day I drank the second half of my smoothie from yesterday.


I'm big on eating leftovers. I've never eaten 'regular' sized portions my entire life. I'm a small person and I've always had a small appetite. Typically, when I eat at a restaurant or order take-out, I make it last for three meals. I never order anything that won't keep or reheat well because I know I won't eat everything in one sitting and I hate to waste food.


So...Don't worry about me when you read about me eating something like rice and that's all for my meal. I'm not starving myself for weight loss. It really is how I've always eaten.


I am certain that my weight gain came from eating one thing that was high in calories. Like a 600 calorie slice of cake instead of dinner or a loaded baked potato instead of a balanced meal with other vegetables.


It never affected my waistline when I did that once in a while (maybe once a month?), but I got into the habit of doing it 3 or 4 times a week. That new bad habit in combination with total lack of exercise and I just really started to spread...


For dinner I had a soup and a salad again. And that was my final meal for the day.


I am trying to follow the advice of Nappy Texan Girl and not eat anything after 7pm. I have heard that before, but I've never made a conscious effort to stick to it, and, like I said before, my work schedule sometimes makes it impossible for me to squeeze in a real meal before that time.


I am really not big on meal replacement bars and shakes designed to eat on the go for times like those, but if I'm serious about the weight loss (again I say, 40 lbs in 4 months) I might have to suck it up and make the sacrifice.


I guess I could do it once or twice a week.


...sigh...


Still planning for the business. I wanted to get out early in the day and go for a walk, but I spent most of the day brainstorming and researching, and then it was time to prepare dinner and clean my kitchen. And then it was almost dark!


The days are shortening quickly!


So, I headed out into the neighborhood for a 20 minute stroll. Since I knew I didn't have much time, I decided to make up for distance with intensity. It was only one mile, but it felt like three!There is a part of my neighborhood that has hills like San Francisco. (I have hitherto avoided those streets. I just wasn't ready.) Today, however, I decided to take them on.


Whew! Those hills kicked my butt! But that's what I needed.


I can already tell I am gaining strength in my arms. The reps are getting easier, but they are still challenging, especially in combination with pulling steep hills. I walked a 25- minute mile. Not impressive at all, even accounting for the steep grades I encountered, but I have to remind myself that I am starting over from a totally sedentary lifestyle and I have never been athletic or particularly well-conditioned for aerobic exercise.


But all of that is about to change.


I have to keep reminding myself that I am just beginning this weight-loss/get-fit/ lifestyle-change journey. The most important thing right now is not that I get dramatic overnight results, but that I have started and that I continue.


Even when - especially when - I fall off the wagon and have to get back on.


So, I'm not even back at 147 yet...sigh..., but, considering the cheating I did two days in a row, I'm pretty proud that I'm already back down to 151... It could be worse...that's how I gotta look at it.