A great week

Hope I don't jinx this upcoming week by bragging, but I lost 2 pounds this week. I owe it to being at the gym EVERY day for the last 8 days and following the diet and keeping protein up and carb count down and I didn't feel deprived of anything. Jeepers, I see a little glimmer of hope that I might make to my goal weight before the official end of my "contest" win. The scale finally showed me the 130's.......I can't even tell you how long that's been since I've seen that number.....I almost fell off the scale. Makes me want to get back to the gym and work even harder....Crossroads is doing a Biggest Loser contest; maybe I can follow one of the contestant's workouts! With some hard work and sweat, I hope to show another big loss again next week. Wish me luck!

Here we go again

Good grief! What will I have to do to lose these last pounds?! I gained 0.2 the week of July 31. I gained a pound of muscle, lost another pound of fat by going to the gym nearly every day and keeping my calories under 1000 per day. I am writing down EVERYTHING I eat, counting calories, not skipping meals........drinking a minimum of 4 bottles of water every day. I just came home from the gym, burned off 625 calories and took in today 910 calories. I had a cup of strawberries that took me over 900 cal......too bad they aren't loaded with protein.
I was really hoping to show a loss on the scale this week to get closer to losing that 70 pounds.....I just am not sure I'll make it, darn it. My friends and family tell me to stop being obsessed about it...that what I've done is remarkable. I am very proud of myself for losing what I have and I'm so very, very grateful to Timeless/FOY for making this possible for me. I just so wanted to be a true success and hit that mark. Tell you what....I'll just keep doing it even after the official end Oct 1; I'm going to Hawaii in January and I will hopefully have done it by then. We still have about 8 weeks left, so maybe, just maybe it will start coming off again and I'll be that much closer. Say a prayer!

It worked!

Finally! I lost a respectable 1.2 pounds this week, after losing only 0.2 and 0.4 here and there and nothing the previous 2-3 weeks. Just by changing the foods I was eating. Even had a half of a small baked potatoe (with a grilled pork chop, with vegetables and small side salad.) It had been 10 months or longer since I'd had a baked potatoe. I told Kim and Dana that if I got on that scale and I didn't lose again, I was going to have some pie! Luckily I didn't have to! I kept the exercise about the same; gym time is about an hour-plus 2-3 days a week and on days not at the gym, I walk briskly for 2.5 miles. I also religiously kept a food journal and kept my caloric intake to less than 900 cal per day. I found a site called fitclick.com that lists caloric values and you can even track online your meals, etc. So, that was good news. More good news was that my body fat % and body fat mass is now NORMAL! Wow. Bad news is, shedding these last pounds is going to be harder.
The Kenny Chesney concert was great.....despite the heat. It was 104 in Sandy on Thursday. And I didn't die or melt in the heat. I actually can stand being in the heat for much longer periods than I ever could in the past. I dont have as much insulation! We kept ourselves hydrated and I just marveled at the thought of me being there in that hot sun in white capris and a small/petite top. OMG. It wasn't that long ago, that I would have begged out of going to something like that because I was so heavy first of all and secondly that I couldn't have standed being in that kind of heat without being almost ill. I wouldn't have been able to wear something light and cool......gosh, how things have changed.
My husband also hit a milestone today; he's ridden 1000 miles on his bike since late April; he couldn't ride much in June with all the rain and still hit the 1000 mile mark today. I'm so proud of him. He's keeping his weight off and now wants to drop another 5-10 pounds. He started at over 250 and is now a trim 189-190. Incredible. It's never too late to step up and make changes in one's life...set a goal and make it attainable and then just keep upping the ante. Just take one day at a time.....if you falter, get back up and do better tomorrow.

PANIC

Now I'm really getting anxious about meeting my goal; I lost only one half pound the last 2-3 weeks. Kim and I decided it has to be the food I'm eating....haven't eaten much more than salads the last several weeks.....perhaps not eating enough calories and this body is in a holding pattern. I started walking more, still going to the gym, but walking 6-10 miles a week. So, I am supposed to change the food I have for dinner and keep the same exercise routine. So, luckily no more salads for awhile and see what happens this next week.
We have about 10 weeks left for the "official" program, although I plan on continuing until I get to my goal weight!! By gosh, I am going to lose this or else. I'm at the 50 pound mark and still have about 15-20 to go. Don't get me wrong....I am so incredibly grateful and happy to have lost this much.....I don't even look like the same person....got a little different haircut, new glasses, and an unimaginable (10 months ago) size 6. I actually have fun shopping for new clothes; no more extra large anythings.....my scrubs are now all smalls.....no more large or XL.......bad thing is, I'm still short......still have to hem or shop in the petites for lengths.
My daughter in law Molly and I are going to the Kenny Chesney concert on July 23; I'll have to get my husband to take a picture beforehand and I'll post it.....such a difference, even from May. I hope the change in diet helps, it would sure be awesome to show some 1-2 pound losses again like I did in the first few months. I'd love to hit that 70 pound mark!

Plateau again

As if losing our beloved Tahoe wasn't enough, now I can't seem to lose these last few pounds. Good grief. I have not lost a single pound since the week of June 10th, and then it was muscle loss from not eating anything at all for a few days. The flip side is, I haven't gained either. But we are nearing the wire and I HAVE to get this last almost 20 pounds off. How does one lose fat, gain muscle and the weight number doesn't change? Guess they cancel each other out. I did lose 2 "pounds" of fat last week, gained muscle, but no weight loss. Dang it.
I have gone down another size, thank goodness. My last purchase was a couple pair of size 6 capri's. I can't believe it.....a size 6. I started at size 16.....now a 6. I wear shorts now when I ride my bike and when I go to the gym. I don't feel so conspicuous when I wear sleeveless tops; gosh, how my life and outlook has changed. Exercise is going to be a way of life now, as is my change in diet. My husband looks awesome; he's even going to ride again in the Snowbird Hill climb and race in August. 51 years old and riding his bike again like he did in his 30's. I'm so proud of him! With his "turbo hip" and 60 pound weight loss, he's in awesome shape.
Well, our hearts are slowly healing and with that, perhaps the weight will start to fall off again. I have to do this now for her, make her proud of me....I can see those big brown eyes of hers...she always aimed to please us, so now it's my turn. These last 20 pounds are for you, baby girl!

A broken heart

How do you mend a broken heart? We had to make the heart and gut wrenching decision to have our beloved Golden Retriever, Tahoe, put to sleep last week......we knew the day was coming and we'd been terribly depressed about it for days leading up to it. She was 2 months shy of turning 13 years old; she was having a lot of trouble walking and her last couple days had no appetite. Our vet told us a month ago that it was time, but we wanted to believe some different pain meds would help her. Then last Tuesday it was evident that we had to......so on Wednesday June 10th......my heart broke into a million pieces.....I've cried every day since. Now I've had no appetite, no ambition to go to the gym. I've only lost a pound and a half and last week lost some muscle due to not eating enough. At least that happened and I didn't turn to food to make me feel better. I know I have to get back to the gym and get back on track.....it's just so hard when you lose a loved one...whether it be a person, dog, cat.....doesn't matter. She had the sweetest soul and will be missed beyond words.
So, not much luck with the weight loss the last couple weeks.....can't lose much when you don't eat. This week hasn't been much better; we are still grieving over the loss of our sweet Tahoe. Today, tho, I forced myself to have at least the 4 protein meals and tried to drink enough water.....I have to work this weekend and hopefully next week will get back to the gym and resume working out. I've got about 20 pounds to go to meet my goal.....I'd sure hate to lose ground now, so I'll have to hit it extra hard......

25%

Well, I had a pretty good week; I lost 2.5 more pounds for a total of 47 pounds, which is about a 25% weight loss.....can you believe that nonsense. For more good news, my husband finally hit his 60 pound weight loss goal! He really should have kept a blog or journal of some sort. His started a year and half ago, when he was anticipating his right total hip replacement. At age 48 his hip was already totally degenerated and was told he needed a new hip joint, was told to try to wait it out and it just was so painful, we sought the opinion of another orthopedic surgeon when he was 50 and was told "why wait?" So, it was done Oct 2008 and on the day of surgery, he'd lost exactly 30 pounds. Since my weight loss program started Oct 1, I've lost 47 pounds and he's lost another 30, just by changing how we eat, the right kinds of carbs and smaller portions, and exercise. He's always been faithful with exercise with his bike riding.....I had always found it necessary to see if I could keep the couch from floating heaven-ward.......good grief. In 2007 I joined a gym and went quite a bit, but didn't change my diet at all.....what a combo this has been. It really does work. I've got about 23 pounds to go.....hopefully it's all downhill from here!