My Journey 2015: This Time Stronger and Smarter!

Slick - thanks, I'll give it another try at some point. I keep hearing how good it is. I'm pretty sure I just didn't cook it long enough.

LJ - Yes, spaghetti squash is allowed! I'll try to find some recipes. I've honestly never had it before. I made some roasted butternut squash last night which tasted really sweet. I wonder if spaghetti squash might be less sweet?

LaMaria - There are many programs out there. This one just felt right for me because most of the others cut meats out which I wasn't ready for. I'm hoping to be able to have potatoes again in the future, but it'll take time.

Mystic - Definitely true! Uphill can be so hard, but it did feel good. Made the legs burn a bit. :)

~~

Went for one walk yesterday with my mom. We went to the road with the hill. She enjoyed it as did the dogs. That route only comes out to 20 minutes, not sure on mileage. I need to start mapping it so I can figure out distances.

So I had another disappointing weigh in this morning. Up to 214.8lb. Still a far cry from my starting point though so all is well. I think the problem may be that I'm not eating enough. My first week I didn't exercise and felt great. Not hungry at all. This week I started walking. Monday and yesterday I was literally starving! I felt like a bottomless pit. I think with the exercise kicking in, I'm not eating enough. So today I'm going to be eating more and we'll see if that helps.
 
Spaghetti squash is pretty bland, so it'll adapt most tastes you add to it, definitely something salty.

I mentioned in LM's thread that I guzzle water before the cravings get the best of me. Definitely helps with a drastic change in diet like you're doing!
 
Been a hectic couple of days. I have a few minutes to check in from work. Will try to catch up on your diaries later tonight. TGIF!!!!

Well, the body certainly works in mysterious ways! My weight at the start of the week was 214lb even. Today (and yesterday), I weighed in at 215.2lb. I'm not sure really sure what's happening with that. I've been keeping on track with the diet, drinking lots of water, etc. The only thing I can think of is maybe I'm retaining water again as my TOM gets closer. Oh well, I guess it'll all balance out in the end. The jeans I'm wearing today feel a smidge looser than usual so that's a good thing. I think I'll need to go back to measurements as well as weight loss to better gauge how this is working.

Well... I hope you all have a great Friday and a great weekend! :)
 
I swear I must be one of the most impatient people on this planet. I've been feeling very discouraged the last week. My weight just has not budged. Yesterday I was at 214.6lb, today I was at 214.4lb. I went from 222 to 214 even in one week (on 2/9) and have been staying in the 214-215 range for the last week. It really sucks to lose 8lb in one week and then stall like this, BUT I keep telling myself it's only been 2 full weeks on this diet and that I just need to give it more time, much more time! It's still frustrating though. I've been eating super clean. Have not cheated once. NO junk food AT ALL. I've also been walking more so something should be happening. I do feel that my double chin has started to shrink a little bit and my tight pants and a little looser so I think it is happening gradually.
 
Don't focus on the scale! That's one measure, but you listed more than one area where you know you've seen improvement. Don't let a number take that positive energy away from you!
 
For what it's worth, it looks like my weigh-in could be the same - a lot in the first week, nothing in the second. Like everyone else is saying, don't let it bother you, 8 lbs is a lot in a week, your body's trying to catch up. If you're sticking to the routine, you're going to keep losing. How are your clothes fitting? Better? That's always been my best gage.
 
Yep, agree with Little John. It's okay, in my opinion. Because the very next week will have a difference. You can't get discouraged, don't let it do that to you. You know you've made great choices and it will pay off. It just may take some time. But it will be well worth it. No junk food is a very awesome thing you've done. Instead of focusing on just the weight not moving aspect, you should definitely focus on how much better you feel like you described at the end of your post. Your hard work and desire shows in many other areas other than just what a scale says. You stay motivated, you keep pushing, you will get there. Stay motivated. Sometimes even Rocky Balboa lost a round, but it's how you pick yourself up and keep going that matters most.
 
Khalid - Oh, I'm definitely not giving up. That's not an option.

Oaks - I can't help but worry about the scale. That's how my brain works. Haha! You're right though. I shouldn't be as stressed, especially when I can see subtle chances happening.

LJ - My jeans, which have felt tight lately, feel a little bit looser so that's good. I do think I am losing a bit.

Dude - Very true. I'm not discouraged enough to quit that's for sure. Just a bit of frustration after seeing other people's before and after pics. Some shed 20lb in just a month and look drastically different. In a perfect world, that would be me too, but as we all know this is far from a perfect world! The scale to me is just one way of seeing that it is working. I need to remember the other aspects to watch as well. I'll continue weighing in, but will try not to stress so much about it.

I did want to go this first full month just doing the diet and walking for exercise. I'm going to keep with that. In April, I may add Taebo back into the mix. I miss it, but I feel that I need to just listen to what my body is telling me during the first month. Am I eating enough? Not enough? Should I avoid a certain food?... etc. I have a feeling once I add Taebo back in I'll need to up my food intake. Which is no big deal, but I want to have a good feel for what I need to eat to feel satisfied otherwise I worry I may go too far in the opposite direction and overeat if that makes sense.
 
Dont forget about the huuuge selection bias in before/after pics. And things like posture, lighting, clothing, etc. Plus people who say they lost 20 pounds are likely to have weighed in fully clothed and hydrated at the beginning but sober/dehydrated and naked at the end. Things are rarely what they seem. You´re doing things that are good for you, that´s all that matters.
 
Mandy- A good way of looking at weight-loss is to average out your WL over the weeks since you started. 4lbs a week is a great WL. That really helped me when I was on the serious part of my WL journey(36kg in 28wks, back in 2007.) It puts things in perspective when you do that. Determination & persistence will get you there xo
 
We would like for our bodies to lose in a consistent linear trend. Unfortunately, it's a series of sizable drops and plateaus as your body adjusts to the curveball you're throwing at it. If you entered your weekly weight in a spreadsheet over the course of 9 months and graphed it with a line graph, you could easily see the pattern. When you know this and expect it, you don't get discouraged. You know that a week or two of a plateau means another good drop after you get through it.
 
Thanks for the reassurance. Tomorrow will be a better day. :)

I have to say I'm struggling tonight with not snacking. I came oh so close to giving in, but I haven't. I'm dying for some popcorn in the worst way, but I can't. I just can't. Thankfully bedtime is nearly here!
 
GOod job resisting the evening snacking!
My first week I lost 6 pounds, the next week I lost absolutely ZERO. The next week I lost 3 pounds. Silly scale, I think it's drunk sometimes.
 
Yeah, scales can be evil that's for sure. Not so bad today. Still at 214.2lb, but at least it's lower than yesterday. :)

Well, I had a very weird day. I woke up feeling rather blah. The thought of eating just didn't even appeal to me. Nothing sounded good. I still had chicken noodle(less) soup for breakfast (weird I know) and a garden salad for lunch. Then I caved and cheated. I'm not supposed to have ANY sweets, but I went ahead and had one of those hard peppermint candies (like the candy cane only round). Hardly the end of the world and it was only one as opposed to the grazing all day long on them that I used to do. Still shouldn't have done it. Now, I'm debating on having a little bit of popcorn for an afternoon crunchy snack. It's been almost a month of no crunchiness. I'm about to burst. Arrgghhh!!!
 
See, that's why I'm doing more than the scale - if I can see progress in something I'm a happy boy, and I know if I keep doing the right thing, I'll see a weekly change for the good somewhere.

One star mint (or "stah mint", depending on where in NH you are) is hardly going to affect anything. Say no to the popcorn! Have some celery instead, or some other crunchy veggie! You can do it one more day, right? Just tell yourself that every morning.
 
Thanks LJ. I read your post before heading out for lunch and when I got home I opted for some raw carrots. No popcorn! :D
 
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