Weighty Matters

I am up 1.6 this week. I am at my wits' end about how to break out of this weird hover pattern that I've been in for about 6 weeks. I've been dancing around these couple of pounds, here, there, everywhere.............. So after some discussion with my leader, here's what I'm going to do: Saturday, I'm going to have a blowout meal. One meal where I enjoy whatever I want, hang the points, and then get on track and out of a rut (which was the topic of our discussion tonight). Saturday, I had already planned to take Maddox to PetSmart for a bath. So for lunch, I will head to Sticky Fingers for some DELICIOUS barbeque (might even have ribs, yes, Lord, please!) and enjoy it to my heart's (and stomach's) content. And then that evening, back on track. We'll see how it goes. But note this: I am nowhere NEAR the point of giving up. I'm too close, and I have just a little to go. I cannot quit NOW. And I have no intention of stopping until I reach my goal!

It was a small loss -- 0.6 -- but it's a loss!!! I am definitely taking it! The cool part was when I stepped on the scale this morning. I usually check myself twice a week -- Monday and Thursday mornings. Monday gives me an idea of how the weekend went, and Thursday gives me an idea of how the weigh-in may go. This morning's was really good .... by this evening, it had worked its way to the 0.6 pound loss. Then again, we celebrated October birthdays today at Macaroni Grill. It kills me that there's only one or two dishes on there that are really points-friendly. One would think that they'd find a way to do smaller portions or to have more than just one or two dishes. But hey, it's once a year, and we got some chocolate cake to boot. The entire cake -- their regulation dessert size -- has more points than my entire daily allotment. Yow. So just one or two forkfuls is more than enough (and still packs a bit of a points wallop). But it's a good week -- and we'r...

Well, it's back..... that weird little hover pattern. I gained back the 0.2 I lost last week. To be fair, this week was far from ordinary, and I'm grateful that the "damage" was that small. Monday wasn't bad until the evening. I got off the plane with a horrid headache -- not quite a migraine, but enough to make me nap first and THEN think food. So it was about 8:00 CT (9:00 home time) and I still hadn't eaten. I looked at a "Takeout Taxi" guide in the hotel room and I swear, reading THAT made me nauseous. There was a Friday's across the road and I honestly didn't even feel like I could make it over there. So I ate a protein meal bar in my room and felt a little better. Tuesday was a little more toward normal, and I even had time to research dinner options; we picked Friday's and I had the Key Lime Shrimp, because info that I found online -- not from Friday's, mind you -- indicated that it was 4 points. Slight detour: I have a whole r...

It has been yet another crazy-busy week. I am doing everything I can to be a step or two ahead before leaving for training in Chicago next week -- and the stress is showing. I'm chomping on sugarless gum like mad .... could be worse, I could be chomping on a Snickers (relax - the thought makes my teeth ache from the sugar!) Usually, stress means trouble for my weight. But I lost 0.2 pounds this week -- and I'm taking those 3+ ounces and claiming them! Those few ounces mean that I have lost 207.0 for my total -- and now I can concentrate on the week ahead, and making wise choices next week. Speaking of, I'd best sign off so that I can check out the restaurants near the hotel, at O'Hare, and send an e-mail to the folks at Corporate regarding lunch during training. Maybe if I share my success story, they'll be willing to get me a nice low-cal, low-fat lunch! :) To all my friends working it this week --- HANG IN THERE! I BELIEVE IN YOU!!!

When I was about 3 months into this process, I did a post called "My Secrets" -- it outlined what I was doing that was working (or not working) for me. A lot has changed since then -- I've lost 170 pounds (give or take), WW revamped the way they determine points, and so much more. So this spring, I had updated the text. I just now realized I forgot to post it........ So without further ado, here is the updated list of "My Secrets": Bringing snacks with you helps a lot – an apple, an orange, a Ziploc bag with baby carrots. Maybe even a bag of 100-calorie treats. Money a little tight? Buy the regular items, a box of snack-size Ziploc bags, and make your own treat packs. It will work just as well, and you can reuse the Ziploc bags! Eat breakfast every day – do not skip it, at all!!! My favorite is a cup of Kashi GoLean cereal (a little more money but worth it) with a cup of skim milk and a banana – 6 points and keeps you full! Pressed for time? Scramble a half-cup ...

I had a loss of 0.8 this week -- I'm pretty happy with that! When you think about it, that's slightly over 3 sticks of butter off my body! And I am still riding the high from the Race this past weekend. On Monday, we took Maddox for a walk, and I jogged for about a block (we were trying to catch up to my brother). I handled it better than Maddox (he got so excited, he got an upset stomach). So I think that I can safely start to add a little jogging to my walk..... just a little. I don't want to blow a knee either. So we will see what this week brings as I make more good choices, do more activity, and see continued progress. ONWARD & UPWARD!!!