Play-doh's Journal

[play-doh]

I'm back! Here it is, the beginning of June and I hadn't been here since ... FEBRUARY!!!
And I missed a post here on my journal from a potential friend/SBD partner. Come back Smelly Flowers!
I'll go find her after this post.

Do I need to confess - yes I do! - that since February I have been eating very terribly. I'd usually eat an okay breakfast, as that seems to be a permanent part of my eating pattern, SBD or not. But for lunch I'd eat a sandwich for my lunch, stuffed with not so SBD friendly contents, such as peanut butter and honey, or full-fat cheese and lots of mayo. Then after work I'd eat whatever I wanted and whatever I could grab. Chips, cookies, whatever. Dinner would be pasta, pizza, terryaki chicken, etc. Bad stuff as nothing was prepared in the SBD-friendly way.

Oh, but just for the record, I never eat hydrogenated oil.

Anyway, for the past few months SBD has not even crossed my mind. It's been a "let 'er rip" period for me. Just let all heck break loose. Blew caution to the wind.
Hmm, how many more cliches can I throw in?

But that was then and this is now. I'm back. My job came to an end last week - I was working in a school - and I can focus on preparing good meals and eating when I'm hungry, not just when my lunch break happens to come around. Also, I've been working out on my treadmill every day, doing a 400 calorie burn every time.

It feels so good to be back in gear. I love this way of eating and I love not being hungry.

I got on the scale yesterday and I was surprised and happy to see:
139

[play-doh]

I took a day off from the treadmill. I needed it. But I'll go for a hard workout tomorrow and it'll feel extra good.

I was going to meet a friend for a glass of wine and my plan was to sip so slowly that I wouldn't even drink it all before it was time to go home. As it turns out, we had to cancel anyway. So, no wine for me at all. Good.

While I was having some really strong cravings today, my children and some friends were crunching on some (baked) Cheetoes. I held out for a while, then finally ate a large handful. My biggest fear was that the one handful would lead to my caving in to further handfuls of varying munchies, but instead I followed up with a fat free cheese stick. Cravings were all gone.

I still haven't eaten dinner yet. And I am very hungry. Must. Be. Careful.

[play-doh]

I love having this secret little place to come to when I'm feeling the need to journal about something as boring as... my eating habits. I mean, who wants to hear about this stuff? Actually, I do enjoy reading other people's SB journals and I especially go to them when I need inspiration. I hope mine will do the same for someone but let's face it, I haven't been particularly inspiring.

Well, I've been doing okay. I seem to go in spurts of doing really well in a particular area, and then not so well in another, then those two habits will change places. For example, in June and July I was very good at working out on my treadmill but not doing so well in the SB eating department. Then in August, it turned the other way around.

I have to say, between the two experiences, I definitely lose more weight when I'm eating right than I do when I'm exercising a lot and my eating is just okay.

So, for the past three weeks I've been eating right. And next week, when my husband gets home from traveling, I'll hit the treadmill early in the mornings. Lame excuse or not, I really can't do much with him gone since I've got the kids to tend to.

Here we are at the end of August. So, in the next month, by October 1, here's my plan:

My goal:
Add 4/week treadmill workouts to my already established good eating habits.

My hope:
Lose a pound a week for the next four weeks. To some people that may not sound like much excitement, but it will be a tough number for me to reach. My weight-loss always stalls out at about 137.
I hope to weigh 133 by Oct. 1

Today's weight:
137.8

[girlbop]

Hey Play-doh

I like reading your journal I know exactly what you mean about having a nice secret place! As far as the workouts and/or eating, you couldn't be more correct. Over the summer I get very, very busy to the point where I'm exhausted all the time. But I was still either gaining or not loosing weight. I literally could NOT work out anymore without sacrificing my already low sleep. So... what to change? Eating! Since coming to that (for me) stunning conclusion about a month ago, I have finally started losing weight and the great thing is that now I have more energy to get out and go play

Keep up the one-two combo and you will say buh bye to those 4 lbs no problemo!

[play-doh]

Hi Girlbop!
I'm so glad to know you've visited my journal. How flattering! I read yours too and it sounds like you're doing awesome! You lost A LOT of weight in P1! I like how you have kept your morning orange drink as part of your routine while still making this SBD work for you. My opinion is that if we give up something that we love so much, then this WOE starts to seem like a diet. So, well done! When I first started, I lost about ten pounds (148 to 138) and then bounced around for a while from 143 - 138) but mostly over the year, I've maintained. I'd really like to drop those last ten pounds once and for all!

What I find to be the most difficult part of staying on track is that I fall into a phase of "I don't really care what I look like." On one hand, it's good to be liberated of something as artificial as our outside appearance, but on the other hand, it will suddenly hit me that I care very much about that outer appearance of mine and it's usually right after I've ransacked my closet looking for something to wear to a party that doesn't make me look like a sack of potatoes. There's not much you can do when that happens.

So, I'm just trying to keep myself in a moderate state of caring - not too much, not too little.

Today's weight: 136.5

[play-doh]

One of my goals over the last few months has been to drink wine only twice a week. And, boy, do I look forward to the designated wine nights. As it happens, last night was one and tonight is one also. Or maybe I'll trade tonight for tomorrow night... I don't know.

This morning I went for a walk with a friend. I honestly don't count this so much as exercising. It's just a little moving around, but that's good. We walk fast and it feels wonderful, but I don't sweat or get my heartbeat up or anything. Mostly I just like being with my friend.

When I came home I ate some tuna. Unfortunately I didn't have a veggie with it... apparently all our veggies were given to the Guinea pig last night. The tuna with just mayo was neither tasty nor satisfying. So I rooted around for something more. And guess what I found. A piece of a brownie that my daughter had gotten on our outing last week. There were two bites left, nothing more, and I ate them. Actually, I stretched those two bites out to about eight tiny nibbles, and, not having any sugar in a couple of weeks (besides wine) it tasted very good.

I then had to force myself not to go back to the kitchen and root for more unfavorables. Instead I read my emails and sent a few. But my mind kept wafting off toward the kitchen... Then I thought of something! I have some of those Crest Teeth Whitening Strips in the cupboard next to the pasta. No, I didn't want to eat them, gross! But since I never find time to do the strips, why not do one now since it takes a full half hour and maybe by then I would get over the urge to snuffle through the cereal boxes. So, I drank a big glass of water, dried off my teeth, put in a Crest strip and in another eight or so minutes my cravings will be outdone by my desire to drop a few pounds. AND I'll have whiter teeth!

A half hour has been the right amount of time to readjust my thinking. Check out my smile.

[play-doh]

Happy First Day of Twenty-Ten!

A new year, a new decade, and a new moon cycle - last night we had a blue moon - and I'm ready for a new beginning. The decade was filled with challenges that made me lose sight of my own happiness and forget all about caring for myself. I put myself down a lot and don't give myself the positive attention I deserve. Essentially, I became a downer.

But I don't want to be down anymore. I am going to make this year a good one by adjusting my attitude. I want to make changes where I can and in the areas I can't change I want to figure out how to be happy and not keep waiting for something to happen that will make me happy. The most important thing I can do is to take better care of myself.

I have no idea how much I weigh, but I do know I feel like a flabby old granny and I have no energy. I'm not going to jump full throttle into the SB plan, but I'm going to be sensible - avoid sweets, breads, wine etc. and eat lots of veggies and lean meats - and start Phase One when I feel ready, probably in a week or two.

I feel better already for having made the decision to move onward and upward in my life!

[play-doh]

Okay, here we go. Started today, full-throttle SBD. I kind of started two weeks ago, then I came down with strep and everything got all wonky, so I just took care of myself, doing whatever I needed to feel better. Now I'm totally well and ready to give up my ugly eating habits. Honestly, I was sick of eating crap food mindlessly.

I had to get on the scale at the doctor's last week. 146. Oops. I've got some work to do. And if the rather high number weren't enough, my pants are tight and even my shirts are squeezing me.

So, today, I had:
B - egg with brocolli, 2 veggie sausages
S - hardboiled egg with mayo
L - spaghetti squash with ground buffalo/spag sauce and parm cheese
D - (Haven't eaten yet) Green salad with ham maybe? Yeah, that sounds good.

Tomorrow I'm shopping for food to make some of the crock pot recipes from the forum here. I'm off to make a list right now.

Hopeful goal - 140 by Valentines Day
Controllable goal - just stay on track and eat by the SBD guidelines

[play-doh]

My eating is going well. I'm staying on course with my plan and I'm not cheating. But it's only been, what, three days? Still, pat, pat, pat myself on the back. Oh, wait, take back two pats because I did have wine last night.

I feel like I've already lost that gluttonous bloat of thoughtless over-eating. My jeans have already loosened up some.

Goal today: keep eating well and no wine tonight.

[play-doh]

I've been making crock pot meals from recipes I've found on this site. Wow, that helped so much to get me through the week. Today I'm making the chicken enchilada stew. I sit in my chair, doing some work on my computer, and a healthy dinner is being made. Nice. It'll be ready at 6:00.

As far as losing weight goes, well, I don't think I've made much progress. I do feel good and I'm not hungry, which is very important. But I haven't made a commitment to exercising and that's where I'm failing big. I know I need to prioritize and make exercise at the top of my list, but I simply can't do it right now. Good eating is the best I can do until life settles down a bit. Ah, well, we do what we can do, right?

[play-doh]

Almost 2 months after my last post...

Here's what's up. In mid-January I made a big effort to change my eating habits but I was really struggling. I started cooking good, healthy SB friendly meals in the crock pot, which has been great. I cut my wine back to only 2 or 3 nights a week, which was probably a good idea for many other reasons as well. And I stopped eating the leftover chips from my kids' lunchboxes. But, obviously, those changes weren't really enough to start seeing many changes. So, I tried to be better, perfect even, and I was only able to last for a few days at a time.

I'm not sure why I couldn't hold my SB momentum, but that's just how it was. So, a friend of mine went from 140 to 120 in sixteen weeks and she said she did it by keeping her daily calories at 1200-1500 and keeping her protein grams per day at about 90 or so. She said she also used a protein shake that's fairly low in calories and very high in protein, PLUS it kept her satisfied until her next meal.

So... guess what! I'm trying her same approach and so far -- this is day 4 -- it's working! I feel great and I think I've dropped a pound already. I don't feel deprived, I'm not hungry, and I'm energized. The shake itself isn't what's really making this plan work, it's just that when I'm satisfied, I don't crave foods and I can keep my calorie count between 1200-1500 pretty easily.

I'm keeping my veggie consumption high, my meats and cheeses are lean and low-fat, my water intake is like nine cups per day, and so far I'm staying away from fruits until I feel like I can add them back in without stirring cravings.

My typical day looks like this:
6:00 - low-fat cheese stick
8:00 - protein shake with skim milk
11:30 - half a balance bar, or some nf cottage cheese with a couple of almonds
1:00 - curry chicken breast or slice roast beef or buffalo patty
veggie salad with vinegar, maybe a bit of oil
2 light rye crisp crackers
4:30 (depending how hungry I am) veggies with lf cheese or half a balance bar or a couple bites of leftover meat from dinner or Greek yogurt with cucumbers
6:30 protein shake with skim milk

At any rate, by the end of the day, my calorie count is about 1300, my veggie consumption is good, my water intake is enough to make me swim, and my protein is around 100 grams.

My exercise... still sucks. MUST WORK ON THAT!

[play-doh]

This was day 5 of my commitment -- REcommitment -- to good eating.
Plus, for the first time in a while, I walked 3 miles on the treadmill and burned about 300 calories.

This morning, I got on the scale and I weigh 141. Last week I weighed 142.
I can't wait to see how much I weigh next week!

I think, for me, it's necessary to count calories. In the past, when I've been following the SBD without counting calories, my weight loss has stalled right around 136. But I am hoping, SO HOPING, that now that I've learned a few things, I will be able to get my weight down to my thin 125 self.

My short term goal: 138 by April 4.
My long term goal: 130 by June 1
My longer term goal: 125 by August

Sometimes, I think it can be risky to set a short-term goal because if you miss the mark, it can be very discouraging. So, I'll make this promise to myself: If I do not make my short term goal, I will keep going!

[play-doh]

139.5 this morning!

I didn't expect to see a three in the the tens place anytime soon, so I'm very pleased about this. However, I also know that I very well could fluctuate for a week or two. There's a lot of water loss in the first week.

I read back through my journal and 136 is about as low as I've ever been able to get my weight, still 11 pounds more than my goal. I've been doing this SB-WOE off and on for several years and I've never quite reached my original starting weight of 148, so It's clear that I've learned something over the years.

Still, I'd love to see the 125 I was six years ago.

I'm going for it!

[play-doh]

Well, I had a few set backs this week. It was a really tough, depressing week. I'm glad it's over.

I'm starting to think that calorie counting is the way to lose weight. I've SBed really well for months without losing weight and I think it was because I was still eating too much.

Anyway, I'm regaining my momentum and over the weekend, hopefully I'll keep my calorie count at 1200 and still not show a gain on my Monday weigh-in.

Today my calories are at 1020 and I have a 220 calorie dinner planned.

[play-doh]

I blew it on Sunday evening. I had a glass of wine (BIG MISTAKE!!!) which not only stimulated my appetite, but it set me up for an "I don't care" frame of mind. Then for dinner I had a big helping of eggplant parmesan.

Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and so far today, have gone perfectly. Eating-wise, that is. Exercise? Um... no. My inner diet coach is yelling at me for not hitting the treadmill, but my work self is saying, Be quiet! Can't you see we're doing important stuff here?

I know I'm paying a price for the lack of exercise, but I'm prioritizing and work wins, at least for now.

Today's weight: 139.6