Status: some loss, not enough.I weigh myself daily and then average out the week’s totals to get an idea of how much I’ve lost (or gained) each week. Since my weight fluctuates so wildly within the week, only weighing once a week would be a lot more discouraging. In the last 4 days I’ve gained and lost the same 3 pounds twice. (Or maybe it was a different 3 pounds, I can’t be sure.) But if I picked the wrong day for the weigh-in, I’d have been really depressed this week. Even averaging, it’s still depressing, but I can see a good and bad side.
Grumpy Mary: “Crap! I’m only losing 1.3 pounds a week! It used to be 2 pounds a week!”
Chipper Mary: “Well, that’s still better than gaining weight each week.”
Grumpy Mary: “I don’t care! I’m losing momentum! Losing enthusiasm! I want the scale to show how hard I’ve been working!”
Chipper Mary: “You just said last week that losing inches was encouraging. In the past 2 weeks you’ve lost an inch off your waist and your hips. Your clothes fit better and your energy level is up. Isn’t that encouraging?”
Grumpy Mary: “Stop being so damn cheerful. The scale is not going down! Argh!”
There’s more, but you get the idea.
I also chart and average my daily exercise. It’s interesting how easy it is to mislead yourself. Looking back over the past 7 weeks, I’d have sworn I was exercising 2 hours a day every day. It’s more like 1 hour a day. I’ve been slacking off on the weekends (except, of course, for this weekend), and that’s probably been one reason my progress has slowed. “They” say you should exercise an hour a day for maintenance. I want to see what happens if I increase the average to 90 minutes a day, or even 2 hours. If I force myself to take a lunch break and walk every day, this is actually quite a reachable goal.
- For this week:
- I’m going to measure everything I can reach: calves, thighs (gulp), hips, waist, bust, upper arms. If the weight isn’t going off, maybe the muscles are increasing? Not that I want bulging muscles, but it would be good to get an idea of what’s going on.
- I’m absolutely-I-really-mean-it going to walk at lunch Every Day.
- Keep focusing on eating vegetables and healthy stuff. Another reason for the slowdown might be traced back to an unfortunate episode known as the Chinese Food Encounter. (I was hungry, hurried, and weak. I confess. It was Beef Broccoli rather than Orange Chicken, but still, enough sugar and fat to choke a diabetic horse.)
6 comments:
A loss of 1.3 pounds a week is good—not drastic enough to put your body into calorie conservation mode because it thinks there's a famine coming on.
But I can see why you're feeling as if it's harder to get the pounds off: There's two of you in there! If you can excise Grumpy Mary, you won't have so many pounds to lose! ;-))
And thanks for the photo. I've always wondered what a diabetic horse looks like.
That's a good point, Katharine! Grumpy Mary is weighing me down. Reminds me of the saying "Angels can fly because they take themselves lightly."
And yes, that photo took a /lot/ of research ;)
I can so relate to this!
When I was in weight-loss mode (I've been pretty much in maintenance for the last five or so years) I had to weigh every day because I have this bizarre ability to retain water, not just for a few days before my period, but for about half the cycle. And it fluctuates about 6-7 lbs from lowest to highest! I was shooting for a slow gradual loss of 2-3 lbs a month, which was hard to track. How do you detect less than a pound weight loss a week with all the noise of a 6 lb variance that has nothing to do with your intake?
So I had to weigh every day and would compare myself generally to how I was doing the month before to see if the averages were going down. Very frustrating. But as the months went by the averages got lower and lower and my pants started being way too loose.
Now I just spot check my weight every now and then and go mostly by how I look and whether my pants still fit.
So I don't think there's anything wrong with daily weighing but just don't let Grumpy Mary get too caught up in it!
Hey Mary!
Just FYI, once I get back from my holiday excursion, I will become your comrade in arms. I too need to get healthier and lose some weight.
As of October 1st, I'm with you.
Keep at it. You're doing great.
Excellent, ct! It's much easier with a workout buddy.
Have fun on your holiday!
Don't forget, Mary, that muscle weighs more than fat. Don't let the slow weight loss discourage you, especially if your workouts involve lifting weights at all.
Hang in there and cardio, cardio, cardio!
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