First the bad news (to get it out of the way): I did not hit my Labor Day goal of 157 lbs ... today (Labor Day) I weigh 159.6. But here is the good news: I am no longer in the 160's! YAY!!!!
On Saturday my weight was 158.8 and on that day I officially was considered no longer obese ... alas, my weight popped up again over 159 today (not sure why the scale does this to me, but c'est la vie) so I am still considered obese (but just barely ... my BMI is 30.2). But I am still really excited to be in the 150s ... haven't been here in 15 years!! I swore to my journal today that I will do EVERYTHING in my power to NEVER get above the 150s again the rest of my life. And I mean it, too!
I just came off a lovely walk this morning ... we are having incredible weather here in the Pacific NW right now ... it is so gorgeous outside I almost want to weep. In a few weeks the rains will come again, but for now it is heaven on earth and there is nowhere in the whole world I would rather be than here. Between me hitting a big scale victory, the beautiful weather, and a long holiday weekend, I have to say my life is just about perfect!
I am a gardener and have spent a lot of time this weekend in my backyard garden and my community garden plot. I have grown a lot of veggies and flowers and am harvesting them now ... loads of green beans, cherry tomatoes (and my first batch of roma tomatoes), potatoes (which I have mostly been giving away to potato-loving friends and family), and dahlias (they make me so happy!). The farmer's market is overflowing with beautiful produce too. Consequently, I spent much of my day yesterday in the kitchen. I made a fresh batch of refrigerator dilly green beans (so yummy -- forget about pickles, I like these way better, and you can eat mounds of them for almost zero calories). I also made a batch of "Jumbleberry" freezer jam (a mix of strawberries, blueberries, and raspberries) -- OMG homemade freezer jam is incredibly yummy -- on the weekends I splurge and have an English muffin w/a little butter and a spoonful of homemade jam and almost swoon over how good it is. And, I also made an amazing snack dip (Barefoot Contessa's Roasted Eggplant & Pepper dip) which I am bringing over to a friend's house today to snack on with some Stacy's pita chips (tasty, healthy snack! Yum!).
Eating all this amazing garden-fresh food makes me feel very in touch with my sleeve, and I am happy that I am giving my body good nutrition with healthy and fresh foods. i was not one of those sleevers who lost their appetite after surgery ... au contraire, I have had a healthy appetite since nearly day one post-op. I still LOVE food and the best thing about the sleeve is that I can still enjoy food, but in reasonable quantities, and it makes me so much more mindful of food than I was before surgery. I did a lot of mindless eating before surgery and I was a really fast eater. I do struggle with myself more than I would care to admit about still eating too fast ... especially when there is a really great meal before me ... I can easily eat 3-5 bites really fast and then say to myself, "Stop! You only have a few bites left now!!!!" and then I have to stop and wait for a while before eating again. This is a big challenge for me.
Also, I definitely have validated what Dr. Aceves told me before surgery, which is that you can defeat your sleeve if you want to -- I can eat a lot more by spacing out the food intake over a few hours, and I have to admit I have done this more than I should. I just know this is something I am going to have to battle with myself to not do on a regular basis. This is a habit I do NOT want to get into!
But overall -- it is the happiest Labor Day weekend I have had in many years. I hope yours is/was fabulous too!
OK, confession time -- I love a good bargain and I lurrrve me some Costco -- even though DH and I have no kids and don't run a business, we spend quite a lot of $ there -- they have so many good quality things, and such great prices. One of the things that always made me sad about being a size 22 was I could never ever buy any clothes at Costco (the highest size they typically go on women's clothes is size 16 and occasionally size 18). So now, I can officially buy clothes from Costco! Woot! I bought a pair of size 16 Dockers capris and a pair of shorts on Friday. Costco doesn't have a dressing room, so it's always a risk when you're not sure what size you wear. But, the clothes are cheap (esp compared to dept. stores) and I figured what the hey, buy some size 16s and see if they fit. I am still in the phase of picking up a pair of size 16s and thinking there is NO WAY these will fit (my brain still thinks I wear size 22), and then pulling them up and finding they do fit. The dockers are cut differently than other clothes -- the waist is actually loose, the hips/butt are fine, the legs are not as loose as the waist and truthfully I would be happier if they were a little looser -- but overall, I would still wear them now for sure (if the weather wasn't so dismal here -- still chilly and today it's very gloomy). I also bought a size 16 swimsuit ($20 for a speedo, score!) but haven't worked up the courage to try that on because I am afraid of how I will look in a swimsuit. I am still bigger on the top than on the bottom so that should be interesting!
I am 175.4 today, only have to lose 6.4 lbs. by July 4th to hit my goal of being under 170 for the vacation to Hawaii. I really hope I can get there! It was kind of a crazy month in my weight loss journey -- May started off great, then I had a big lull in the middle where nothing much happened, then I had a good week this week. I am hopeful to end up with an 8 lb. loss, which is what I've had each of the past 2 months -- if not the full 8 lbs. I should be close (I think I need to lose slightly under 1 lb. to get there, and I'll be doing some physical labor today, which should help with the calorie burn).
My BMI is getting ever closer to the 30 mark, and boy oh boy I can't wait until my BMI puts me at merely "overweight" instead of "obese!" (When I weigh 159 I will be officially below a 30 BMI). That will be a great day to celebrate on my weight loss journey -- of course, at the rate I am going, that won't be until the end of July or maybe early August, so it's not imminent -- but that will be my next major progress goal.
So my five month surgiversary is in two short days. Today I was 173.8, up a couple of oz. from Friday I think, but still, getting pretty close to my July 4th goal of 169 lbs!
I had DH weigh himself yesterday to see how much he weighs. He weighs 170.8 so I am 3 lbs. above his weight. It will be a happy, happy day to make my July 4th goal, as I will also weigh less than my hubby. I am just shy of 42 lbs. above my ultimate goal weight, so more than halfway to goal, and not even six months out. Yay!
Today DH and I went to Seattle Suntan for our first-ever indoor tanning experience. Let's just say it can be pricey to get a tan (and maintain it) but I have pretty fair (AKA *white*) skin and don't want to go to Maui next month (exactly one month from today, woo hoo!) blinding people with the whiteness of my skin. We went on one of the newer premium beds -- it was so weird. I didn't expect it would be so hot in the tanning bed .... and your skin stays warm for quite a while afterwards. I didn't put on any tanning lotion before tanning but ordered some on Amazon after I got home so will have some for next time.
I tried on that Speedo swimsuit I got from Cosco ... fit everywhere but in the bust area (too small in the bust, alas). So today I went to Sams Club and bought a size 18 2 piece (tank top and swim skirt), and hopefully that will have better coverage. I've bought several items of clothing, all size 16, so it was kind of a bummer to have to bump up a size in swimsuits, but c'est la vie. My legs are awful, lots of cellulite still in the thighs (all the way down to the knee) and I have quite a gut still ... let's just say men won't be gazing at my bod with desire at the swimming pool, LOL!
But, on the other hand, my mom says she is JEALOUS of me now that I weight less than she does ... first time in a long time that is the case. But it is good natured jealousy, and not mean spirited. I've also gotten quite a few comments from co-workers about how different I look ... it's funny, when you see yourself in the mirror you don't notice change as much as others do. The only time I really notice how much weight I've lost is when I put on a piece of clothing I had worn before surgery ... I really can't wear most of my old clothes anymore, they are horribly loose. Only the clothes that were really tight can still be worn (and now they are loose).
I've also noticed my weight loss definitely goes in cycles ... I will have a couple of good weeks of weight loss and then a couple of weeks where nothing happens. And I am not doing anything different. It's just odd the way that happens.
Anyhow, five months out from surgery and I am feeling really good and am still so happy with my sleeve. I love how it helps me manage my volume eating problem (can't volume eat anymore!). And I really have a different relationship with food now. I just wish I would have had this surgery years ago! But am glad I'm still fairly young (43) so plenty of life ahead of me. This is the first summer in MANY years where I will be doing things I really love to do ... and not be ashamed (so much) to do them (swimming, wearing shorts, able to keep up with people while walking, etc.)
So I am now in my fourth week post-op, On Monday I am officially through with the mushies stage and can start solids. I actually have been happy with mushies and might continue longer especially if I have a hard time with solid meats.
Weight loss -- another disappointing week. 2.5 lbs. down from last week and all of that was in the first few days of the week. For the last four days or so I've been bouncing around from a low of 204.0 to a high of 205.5. Exasperating. I am SO CLOSE to ONEderland and feeling like it's not going to happen. I wanted to be there by Valentine's Day but at the rate I've been going it's not going to happen until the middle of February.
Two things I know I am not doing right are 1) not getting enough fluids each day and 2) more carbs than I should be eating. I'm mad at myself about both. Oh, add 3) not exercising regularly. As far as fluids goes, most days I am getting around 40 - 44 oz fluids and I know that is not enough! I just have to really buckle down on this and force myself to drink more -- drink almost constantly. I am pretty sure at least part of the reason why I haven't lost more is because I'm not taking in enough fluids.
Re 2) carbs -- I have been using club crackers and baked lentil crackers as a mushy delivery system from bowl/plate to mouth -- usually less than a full serving but adds another 80 - 100 calories to each meal when I eat them (but to be fair ... the meat side is usually about 150 calories or less anyway, so most days I am getting 600 calories or less total, even with the crackers. Yes, I am rationalizing!) I also caved and bought some carby snacks from Costco (baked Lays snack bag collection and Riceworks Spicy Chili brown rice crackers). I have had one bag of baked Lays and then yesterday caved and opened the bag of the Riceworks crackers and had a good full serving of those. I KNOW this is bad for my weight loss .... I think it might be a little PMSing. And honestly, I have missed carbs and I this is a bad, slippery slope I'm on!
Re 3) exercise, I only exercised once this week (last Sun) but as soon as I finish this blog post I am going with DH to the local fitness center (where we have a membership that we have paid every month for a long time but haven't used in nearly as long) and hop on the treadmill. I'm going to start out taking it easy and hopefully build up back to where I was last spring (when we stopped going). DH and I will have to start going regularly after work a couple of nights a week. If I can exercise 3 days a week for a consistent period of time I'll be happy and then try to gradually bump it up.
On the bright side, I did officially get to 20 lbs. weight loss since surgery, and am pretty sure I will be there (or hopefully a little better) on my one month surgiversary. I have about 80 lbs. to lose to get to goal weight ... from where I am today it seems SO far away. I was really hoping to lose 25 lbs. in my first month but it looks like that just is not to be. I am envious of fast losers. And a little mad at myself that I am not doing everything right to help myself get there.
Oh -- also it's been quite the challenge to eat meals with DH. Last night we went to our neighborhood Mexican restaurant and I ordered my own dinner (knowing I would only make a small dent in it) -- mole enchiladas filled with ground beef and refried beans on the side. Man it was good, and everything mushed up very nicely, but it was ridiculous looking at the platter when I was done with my 4-5 bites (it was like this tiny divot of food missing out of an otherwise full plate). DH said, "They're going to think you don't like it," but I asked for a to-go box and filled it up and will be eating the same meal for the next 3 days I think. Luckily for me, I don't mind eating leftovers repeatedly!
When we are at home, it's just SO WEIRD to eat such a tiny amount and at a snail's pace while DH eats at a normal/fast pace ... I end up abandoning half my dinner at the time he's done, and then waiting an hour or so, and then finishing it off on my own.
I am still glad I got this surgery -- 20 lbs. lost in a month is by far the most I've ever lost in such a short time. And I do hope I can maintain a 2.5 lb. weight loss each month from here on out -- that will work out to about 10 lbs. lost per month and at that rate I will be at or near goal by late summer.
Gotta go to the gym!
In my last blog posting I mentioned how my weight loss goes in cycles, and that has proved to be the case this week. After two weeks of good weight loss, this week I only lost 1 lb. -- I'm 172.8 today. I expect next week will be similar, and then hopefully the last 2 weeks of June will be another good weight loss cycle. I am 3.8 lbs. from my July 4th goal, and I think I can still make it, barring a stall.
I still have some of my old size 22/3X/2X clothes in my closet, but slowly but surely I am giving them away to Goodwill. I just filled another large bag with clothes to donate this morning and will drop them off today (and pop into the store to see if there's anything cute to buy). Some of the 1X clothes I bought in late March/April are definitely too big now ... that is a good feeling! Aside from my size 18 swimsuit (which I need because I am so darn busty), I am totally out of the plus sizes now.
My hair loss is definitely continuing, but not as bad as I had thought it would be. I have seen stories of women losing hair in handfuls, and I haven't experienced that ... I do shed hair for sure when I am washing my hair and styling it.
I have noticed time and time again that my sleeve now is just part of me ... my life is totally normal now, except I just can't eat as much food as I could before surgery. I am losing weight pretty effortlessly. I still have to battle the carb monster and not make stupid choices, but it's not nearly as hard now as it was before surgery to walk past the bakery section, or confine myself to two or three little bites of garlic bread with a meal instead of half a loaf, or to skip having lunch at fast food 3 or 4 days a week (though I do love me some Wendy's salads ... they make great salads, and they're pretty guilt free esp. since I have the half size salad, skip the cheese and have grilled chicken on the salad). A couple of times I have 'splurged' and ordered a hamburger and fries at a fast food joint, but I can only eat a few fries and really they don't feel that great in my sleeve, so it's not as tempting to eat them as it was pre-surgery. I do still love food, and I am actually glad about that, because good food is one of life's great pleasures. I just now have this wonderful, powerful tool, that helps me to enjoy the heck out of my food, in small quantities.
I have seen a lot of people losing incredible amounts of weight since being sleeved ... that's not me, but I am more than halfway to goal and not yet six months out. Next month will be my six month surgiversary and I hope to be 30-some-odd lbs. from my end goal weight. I don't exercise much (really my only exercise is gardening, which I do for several hours each weekend day and some evenings after work) so I know I would lose more if I were exercising more ... now that the weather is getting really decent, I will be bumping up my exercising more. I really do need to work on toning, as my loose skin is yucky (but not as bad as fat!).
So ... off to the garden now. I am going to be having some wonderful salads this year. I have two pet rabbits and DH and I make them a big salad every night for dinner (veg and little bits of fruit only, of course, no dressings or nuts or croutons or such) ... and every time I make a bunny salad I'm like, "Yum, I want to eat this too!" My dinners most summers are going to be salad with some grilled meat or fish ... YUM!!!!
So I got a new scale this week. My old scale would change weight depending on whether I started with my left foot or right foot.. I got a brand new & supposedly highly accurate scale and it was delivered from Amazon on Tuesday. Well, shock of all shocks, it showed I weight 2.8 lbs. more than the old scale. I was SOOOO mad! The next day the weight was confirmed, and then yesterday ... OMG ... it said I had gained two lbs. I was about ready to send the dang scale back to where it came from. And then I had this dilemma about whether to change my starting weight on my weight loss ticker to be 2 lbs. heavier ... and did that for a day or two ... but then things got better today and so I changed my ticker back to what it had been before the new scale. I got on the new scale this morning and it said 203.4 lbs. Yay! My old scale said 203.0 (which it has been saying pretty much all week). It's just so weird how my old scale seems far more consistent than the new scale!
So, for the week I am calling a loss of 2 lbs. (since my weight last week was from the old scale, and I have NO idea what the new scale would have said last week). I am SOOO close to ONEderland ... 3.5 lbs. and I will be there. That will probably be two weeks away, I'm guessing. So barring some miraculous big weight drop this weekend, I will have just barely missed my goal to be at ONEderland by Valentine's Day. But still, to be down 21 lbs. from a few weeks ago is pretty good. I think I'm right about average weight loss for my BMI.
I also have decided to stop the daily weigh-ins. They only make me crazy. Friday is my designated weekly weigh in day (since I was sleeved on a Friday). I will peek on Val-Day to see how close/far I am from my first goal but try not to weigh again until Friday.
I had pizza for the first time since being sleeved last night .... oh wow it was good. Pepperoni and bacon. I had about 2/3 a slice, something like that. No crust. I was stuffed. It is still very hard, though, to have food in front of me that I want so badly to eat, but can only eat a small amount of, and can only eat slowly. But on the other hand it is very gratifying to be totally full on such a small amount of food. There was one slice of pizza left over from dinner and I had that for lunch today and it was also good. Actually I had it for lunch and an afternoon snack since I could only eat half at lunch. I tried a bite of crust but don't think my sleeve is ready for that yet as I was rather uncomfortable afterwards.
Tonight is date night ... going out to our fave local Thai restaurant. I'll have chicken satay and maybe order some coriander chicken to eat this weekend. I know I'll only probably be able to eat one skewer of chicken satay but I am SO looking forward to that!
Breakfast was an egg (well about 2/3 an egg) on a sandwich thin (about half of that) and that was very filling and kept me full until lunchtime. I like that breakfast a lot.
Let's see ... what else ... I went to the gym after work on Wed and walked 45 minutes on the treadmill. It's hard to exercise in the evening because I am still pretty tired when I get home from work. Will go to the gym tomorrow morning and get the weekend off to a good start.
I am definitely below BMI of 30 now, which means I am no longer obese! Today I weighed in at 157.4. I have set a Halloween goal to be 149 and it will be a tough challenge, given how slow my weight loss is now ... but, to be positive, I am still losing weight. When I go to update my weight in my ticker, the chart shows steady downwards progress. I am most definitely not a fast or even an average loser at this stage ... I've been losing about 5 lbs. a month the past couple of months, and that is with fairly vigorous exercise on a regular basis (3-4 days a week).
I am just getting all that weight stuff out of the way because what I really want to focus in on today is talking about non-scale goals. When I first started setting weight loss goals just prior to surgery, I had identified weight loss and non-weight loss goals. Some of the things I really wanted to do were to go swimming again (preferably in the ocean), inner tube down a river, go hiking, and inner tube (sled) down a mountain in winter. I have done the swimming and inner tubing, and this weekend bought my first pair of hiking boots and went on an easy (paved trail) hike with my hubby yesterday ... so I am hitting my non-scale goals! DH is very pleased with how interested I am getting in activities. Before surgery I would never do anything active because it was just too hard, physically, to do things. Now that I have lost over 70 lbs., I have far more energy and stamina to do things, and now I want to do them.
I did some clothes shopping yesterday ... I am 99% sure I will end up as a size medium (8-10) and right now I am wearing a size 12 (yay!). It was kind of a thrill to try on some Petite Large size tops and see they were loose fitting! So, I bought a bunch of clothes that are size M and they are a little form-fitting now, but I know in the next couple of months they will fit better. For now, I can layer the tighter fitting shirts under other shirts or jackets, and it doesn't look that bad.
I definitely need to work on strength training, and I will hit the gym once or twice this week to get started on that. I have a lot of flab on my arms and belly (yuck) and hope to tone those areas up over the coming months.
I also did some "maintenance" activities yesterday ... got a slightly new hairstyle, had a pedicure and had my eyebrows waxed .... we are definitely into fall here in the Seattle area (first real rains have come this weekend, and it has been markedly cooler the past few days), so in honor of the change in season I am sprucing myself up some.
I have been a bit down in the dumps lately because the past few weeks' weight loss has been really slow. But this week was great -- over 3.5 lbs. lost! I am now down to 192.2, very close to being in the 180s and so excited about that!
I had a NSV today, too. About a month ago I went shopping for some new jeans, since my size 22's were getting pretty loose. I was really happy to find out I could fit into size 18WP jeans, even though they were a little snug. I bought two pairs of jeans. I am very short and the jeans were still a couple of inches too long, so I needed to get them hemmed (I can't sew at all!). I had a lot going on the past few weekends, so kept putting off taking the jeans to get hemmed, but today I finally did it, because the size 22s are so loose they are going to fall off any day now, and just *have* to go. So I went to the seamstress to get the jeans hemmed, and put on the size 18s for the seamstress to measure, and I was quite gratified to notice that they were looser than I remembered when I bought them. The seamstress made me stand on a little dias so she could get the length right and I was facing a large full-length mirror. At that point I noticed the new size 18's were actually already pretty darn loose in the legs, and comfortably loose around the torso. I started wondering if maybe I was getting close to fitting into a size 16WP. So, after I finished with the seamstress, I headed on over to Macy's and decided to try on some new jeans.
I picked up a pair of Levi's size 16 short, the Macy's house brand of jeans, and a pair of size 16 capris. When I got to the fitting room, I picked up the Levi's first and was aghast because the size 16s looked really, really small. I didn't think I could even get them up over my thighs ... but I did. I even got them buttoned and zipped up, to my amazement. OK, I have to admit, they were tight, and I wouldn't have felt really comfortable wearing them, so off they went. I nearly bought them just to measure my weight loss progress, but decided to hold off for a few weeks and come back and try again in a month or so. The Macy's jeans, however, fit perfectly and so did the capris. I took my new size 16 jeans to the seamstress and had her swap out one of the size 18 jeans (which I will hem using that magic hem stuff I bought from Walgreens). So, I am officially able to wear size 16! Woo hoo!
I ended up buying a couple of new bras this weekend too -- the balconette style from Lane Bryant, size 42DDD. I was pleasantly surprised at the nice shaping they provide. My girls are hangin' low, so to speak, so they need a strong support and shaping bra!
Now I will be brutally honest -- I look like total crap with clothes off. I have horrendous cottage cheese thighs right now -- not just the normal cellulite area, but everywhere down to my knees, front and back -- ick. And as I mentioned, I pretty much have the breasts of an 80 year old woman. And I still have a big old gut and butt. And, I am sporting a rather nasty wattle on my chin, making me look years older. Every day I put bio-oil on my chin hoping to moisturize and firm the loose skin, but it doesn't seem to be working that great. My body is definitely smaller than it was, but by no means is it a body I would be willing to parade a bathing suit around in!
But, all in all, I am totally thrilled with my sleeve and feeling better and more confident every day. I am really looking forward to the summer, when hopefully I will be down in the normal size clothes range, and will look and feel even better. I talked to my husband and we are going to try the couch to 5K program this spring, and sign up for a local 5K race this summer. That will be a HUGE NSV for me, to finish a 5K!
I am really excited about the future!
I am 164.4 lbs. this morning. I am nearly 70 lbs. lighter now than I was in the winter, and summer is much better without those extra pounds! I find I am far more active, and my energy level is far higher, than it was pre-surgery.
Yesterday morning was a perfect, sparkling summer morning. We have had a very cold year this year and most days this summer it has not gotten above the low 70's (and on many days temps didn't even get out of the 60's). But yesterday was the day everyone has been waiting for ... warmer, but not hot, and no hint of rain anywhere.
I am now in the habit of walking a 2.5 mile trail several times a week that has a big section of long, fairly steep hill. I did that walk yesterday, then went straight down to my community garden plot and did some weeding and garden chores for about 1.5 hours, then went home, changed, and went to the Puyallup farmer's market (it's fabulous!) with DH and had lunch (a few bites of kielbasa) and walked around to the vendors (bought lots of cherries, some garlic bulbs, and a pretty pink and white hydrangea). I would never have had the energy before surgery to do all those three things in one morning!
Other news ... I am in a class at work and one of the ladies in class with me who works in our office (though not directly with me) caught up with me during break and complimented me on how good I look. Then she asked me if I had had weight loss surgery, and I said I had (I decided long ago to be very upfront with everyone about my surgery, if anyone were to ask). She said that she had a gastric bypass back in 2004. I was surprised (she has worked in our office about 4 years, and the whole time she has been at a stable size/weight ... I am guessing she is about a size 10/12). We spent some time talking about WLS. She has done very well with managing her weight ... she lost about 80 lbs. with gastric bypass and has gained back about 10 lbs. in the past 7 years. She says she does still have to take the nutritional supplements regularly, and as a result of her surgery she is completely lactose intolerant and can't have any dairy or she has horrible side effects. She also has to really watch her sweets intake. She hadn't heard of the VSG procedure and once I described it to her she said she wished she could have gotten it ... but overall she looks great. I know I will need to be vigilant about not having weight re-gain once I hit my final stopping point, wherever that ends up being. I have 32 lbs. left to hit my goal ... hoping to get there by the end of the year. We'll see how I do!
No weight lost this week. I must be back into my non-weight-losing cycle. For the month I Iost 6.4 lbs. total -- URGH. I was hoping to lose 8 but it was not to be. At least it wasn't as bad as last month! My body definitely loses weight in phases ... a couple of weeks of good weight loss, then a stall or very low weight loss for a couple of weeks. I have a feeling that it's going to be this way for the rest of the time I am losing weight, though I suspect I may have longer stalls and shorter losing phases. I still have 33 lbs. to lose to get to goal. At the rate of 5 lbs. lost a month it will take me another six months (almost 7) to get to goal. Not that I am complaining ... to only have 33 lbs. to lose to get to goal is something I never could have achieved without being sleeved .... last year at this time I was in the mid/high 220s .... so I am down over 60 lbs. I am wearing a size 14/Large now ... normal clothes! I look and feel like a normal person again. And for that I am very thankful!
I have been doing well with exercising ... I walked 4 times this week (and would've done more, but was in a class at work and needed to get to work 45 minutes earlier than normal, so that really impacted my morning walks). I did some intervals on a couple of the days and on one day I really overdid the intervals (my thighs were really aching for a couple of days). Yesterday and today I did longer walks (since it's the weekend and I have more downtime).
I have not done well with eating this past week and I know that is contributing to the lack of weight loss. In class I would get bored, and eat mindlessly (and there was always food around ... though I tried to stick mostly to good stuff, like fruit or beef jerky, I did have some pretzels and rice chips and a handful of Reese's Pieces (bad me!!!). This week it's back to normal (except Tuesday, when there is a baby shower I will be attending, and most likely will indulge in a little piece of cake).
I have been thinking a lot about what I have been eating and I believe that I basically have been eating like someone in maintenance ... being mostly mindful of what I am eating, but still having treats here and there. This week I'm sure I ate least 1,000 calories a day, probably on a couple of days it was more like 1,300. My basal metabolism rate is 1,600 calories a day, so no wonder the weight is not coming off ... even with the exercise several days a week, I probably didn't burn too much extra. It kind of sucks to be such a petite woman! I don't have much room for error on the calorie side!
At the rate I am going with the weight loss, I think I may be cutting it super close again to making my Labor Day goal of 157 lbs. But hey, if I get out of the 160s before September, that will be really cool.