Archives for March 2007

Busy Work Week

This past week has been very busy for us at PortalFeeder (work) as we’ve just re-opened the doors for new members. I work in customer support with AJ and I do the billing so we’ve been busy getting all the newbies organized.

I love my job and I love that I can do this from home. You would think that I could make some time for exercise, but somehow when I get caught up in the busyness of work, this is the first thing to fall by the wayside for me…along with not taking the time to prepare good meals. This doesn’t happen too often, so hopefully I will get better at balancing this as I go.

So I’ve not exercise that much over the past week or so, but I am really looking forward to getting back into things next week! Wow! Did I say that? I actually miss my exercise routine! I guess that means that I have developed a nice healthy habit there. πŸ˜‰

 

Week 12 Check-in: March 26, 2007

Starting Weight: Jan 1 – 278 lbs
Previous Week’s Weight: Mar. 19 – 250.4 lbs

Current Weight: Mar. 26 – 249 lbs

Week 12 Weight Loss: 1.4 lbs

Total Weight Loss: 29 lbs

Exercise Report:
Cardio: Walk (60 minutes) x 5
Strength Training (upper body) x 2 (now doing 3 sets of 12-15 reps on 5 machines/exercises)
Abs x 2 (now doing my 8 Minute Ab Dvd!)
Pilates x 1 (Beginning Mat Workout with Ana Caban – video – workout is about 26 min)

Food Report:
Average daily calories: out and busy with work (see below)

Notes:

  • 22nd – started P
  • We had a big launch for work – this keeps me very busy and when we get in this mode I really need to have a plan for exercise/eating. I’m not eating poorly…just not making the time to cook/eat as much as I should be.

 

How I Managed Last Week

My parents left yesterday and I have to say that the week went great! We did eat out and at J and AJ’s quite a bit, but I feel that all-in-all I managed to do quite well with the eating and did stick to my exercise routine! AND as you can see from my weekly check-in, I DID lose weight and continue to do so!

My parents were in a bad accident a year and 1/2 ago. They were hit by a drunk driver while on their motorcycle. My father had a very badly broken foot/leg and has been dealing with pain, surgeries and a lot of therapy. As part of his physical therapy, he does a lot of work in the pool. I have a pool here at my apartment complex so he was able to continue with this while visiting this week. I actually joined him one day and decided that I really do need to fit swimming into my fitness routine at some point as it was quite fun for me.

I’m actually more nervous about sticking with things over the next few days as we are having a bit launch at work tomorrow. We’ve been working quite hard to get ready for this and tomorrow it all happens. What this has meant for me in the past, is a complete focus on work – we’re talking 24/7 between AJ (who I also work with) and myself as we make sure the ordering process and new members are taken care of right away. I will HAVE to plan for exercise and meals during this time as there’s really no reason why I can at least get outside for short (15 minute) walks at a time. And this is good for me as otherwise I’ll be indoors for about 3 days straight! πŸ˜‰

I’m learning that so much of living a healthy lifestyle is really about planning for things like this. For example, I knew that I had this coming, so even though my parents were here last week, I really wanted to keep the exercise going.

Here’s to healthy living and planning for success! πŸ™‚

Week 11 Check-in: March 19, 2007

Starting Weight: Jan 1 – 278 lbs
Previous Week’s Weight: Mar. 12 – 252.4 lbs

Current Weight: Mar. 19 – 250.4 lbs

Week 11 Weight Loss: 2 lbs

Total Weight Loss: 27.6 lbs

Exercise Report:
Cardio: Walk (60 minutes) x 5
Strength Training (upper body) x 3 (now doing 3 sets of 12-15 reps on 5 machines/exercises)
Abs x 3 (now doing my 8 Minute Ab Dvd!)
Pool x 1 (mostly messing about – did a few laps)

Food Report:
Average daily calories: mostly at sister’s or out to dinner this week (see notes below)

Notes:

  • Parents were here visiting this week so we did eat out a fair bit.
  • I do try to be very consistent with writing down my calories, BUT this is not going to be a quick process and some days I will not write them down – rather than trying to figure out every little thing I am eating while out to dinner (for example)

 

Parents in Town for the Week

My parents arrived a few days ago and will be here for about 1 week. They are here for a visit (they live in Michigan) as well as helping J with June wedding plans. They are staying with me and it is great to have them here.

In terms of my regular diet and exercise routine, this is a great test of what it means to keep moving through the times that are not ordinary to our day-to-day lives. I’ve decided to keep to my routine (exercise and eating) as much as possible while at home, knowing that there will also be a fair bit of eating out.

So far, so good. I’ve made the decision that I’m not going to pig out, but I am also not going to feel guilty. I think part of my strategy for planning the weight loss challenge is dealing with "real life" situations like this.

I think it’s one thing if you are trying to lose 10-20 lbs or so, but when you have 100+ lbs to lose, there is no real way to rush it. So we might as well live life along the way – especially if we are meeting our targets every month.

I tend to think that a good maintenance plan or "real life" plan for eating follows the 80/20 rule, meaning that if I eat very well 80% of the time (week/month, etc), I’d be fine eating out or have a bowl of ice cream for the other 20%. Makes sense to me!

I’ll post a report later of how the week goes and of course you will see the regular posted weekly results to see what effect (if any) this week has had on my weight loss.

For now, I am going to enjoy this time with my parents!

Week 10 Check-in: March 12, 2007

Starting Weight: Jan 1 – 278 lbs
Previous Week’s Weight: Mar. 5 – 253.4 lbs

Current Weight: Mar. 12 – 252.4 lbs

Week 10 Weight Loss: 1 lbs

Total Weight Loss: 25.6 lbs

Exercise Report:
Cardio: Walk (60 minutes) x 6
Strength Training (upper body) x 3 (now doing 3 sets of 12-15 reps on 5 machines/exercises)
Abs x 3 (now doing my 8 Minute Ab Dvd!)

Food Report:
Average daily calories: 1400

 

Now Doing 8 Minute Ab Workout

I love the 8 Minute Ab workout dvd – it comes in a serious with arms, butt and all that but for some reason the abs is the only one that I ever really got into.

I like it because it is quick (yes, it really IS only 8 minutes) and powerful. To start, I can’t quite get through the full workout for each set, but I know it will just be a matter of time as I have done this routine in the past. I will do a full review of this and other exercise equipment that I am using at a later date. For now, I just wanted to make mention of this addition to my routine.

I also feel great because I am sticking to my fitness goals and I’m really happy with the way that I have been working up to them. The ab work is a good example of that as I’ve been building starting with 1 minute of crunches just a month or so ago. You KNOW I will be celebrating here when I can sail through the whole 8 minutes without stopping.

I also love doing ab work because it makes me "feel" so darn skinny! πŸ˜‰

I know that it is just a matter of time (OK, quite a bit of time) before I am working to not only get the fat off, but to define these muscles so that I could wear a two piece swimsuit if I chose to. πŸ˜‰

Hey, ya gotta keep a picture in front of you as you are working through these goals.

Week 9 Check-in: March 5, 2007

Starting Weight: Jan 1 – 278 lbs
Previous Week’s Weight: Feb. 26 – 256.6 lbs

Current Weight: Mar. 5 – 253.4 lbs

Week 9 Weight Loss: 3.2 lbs

Total Weight Loss: 24.6 lbs

Exercise Report:
Cardio: Walk (60 minutes) x 6
Strength Training (upper body) x 3 (now doing 3 sets of 12-15 reps on 5 machines/exercises)
Abs x 3 (now doing my 8 Minute Ab Dvd!)

Food Report:
Average daily calories: 1509

Notes:

  • Feb 26 – started P

 

Month 3 Goals: March 07

Weight Loss and Fitness Goals:

Starting Weight: Jan. 1 – 278 lbs
Starting Weight Mar. 1  – 256.8 lbs
Q1 Weight Goal: 246 (32 lb loss)
Weight loss goal for month: 10.8 lbs (246)
Weight loss goal per week: 2.7 lbs 

March Exercise Goals:

  • Cardio/walking 6 times/wk (60 minutes)
  • Strength Training 3 times/wk (3 sets of each machine/exercise)
  • Abs 3 times/wk – (8 Minute Abs Dvd)

March Food/Nutrition Goals:

  • Adjust calories to 1500/day (try for a few weeks)
  • 5-6 fruits and vegetables a day
  • more conscious of eating protein with every meal
  • more conscious of drinking water
  • add fish/shrimp
  • Multivitamin daily
  • aim for no eating past 8pm

 

 

Month 2 Check-in: February 07

Month 2 Check-in: February 07

Starting Weight: Jan 1 – 278 lbs
Previous Month Weight: Feb. 1 – 264 lbs

Current Weight: Mar. 1 – 256.8 lbs

Month 2 Weight Loss: 7.2 lbs

Total Weight Loss: 21.2 lbs

Initial Measurements (1 month in):

Arms: 15.5 in.
Chest: 46 in.
Waist: 44 in.
Hips: 56 in.
Thigh: 29 in.

Measurements: March 1:

Arms: 15.5 in.
Chest: 45 in.  (-1 in.)
Waist: 44 in.
Hips: 56 in.
Thigh: 29 in.

Month Decrease in Inches = 1 in.
Total Decrease in Inches = 1 in.

 

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