Over a Month later...

So it's been over a month since our last entry and our last health-reboot.

I'm sad to report, I'm in need of another one.

While the Navy keeps Sean busy with active work, my job keeps me glued to a chair and desk for 8 (lately 8+ hrs) a day. While I've been keeping my intact fairly healthy (cutting back on desserts, increasing water and protein, decreasing caffine, etc.), it hasn't been enough.

So yesterday multiple stress factors got the best of me and I dove into working out to deal with it (yeah me, right?). I burned 200 calories on the elliptical, did some weight lifting circuits, and Sean picked up Just Dance 2 for the PS3, so we danced for half an hour and got our sweat on.

What is the result of all that working out? Well, we were tired a decent hour (9:30-10pm), and, when we got on the scale this morning, he was down to his standard (208) and I was UP ALMOST 3 LBS! I managed to only gain 1 lb during my 40 hr, 3 day drive to Yosemite and back, but I managed to put on 3 lbs overnight, during the week, while staying well within my calorie count.

(insert explative here).

Ugh. I'm starting to regret having bought my wedding dress already. It was tight in the hips 8 lbs ago. I "assumed" I'd continue losing weight. But ever since the move up here, it's just been coming on more and more and more. Now, I can see myself buying that "special" underwear that holds, tucks and sucks a few inches off. Talk about humilitating...

But, yes, I still have plenty of time (we don't even have a date set, but we're aiming for next fall), and yes, I'm having a bit of pity party. But I just think it's ironic. They say "the weight didn't come on over night, so you can't expect it to go overnight," but the truth is, it DID come on over night. And this morning's weigh in is proof - even Sean was shocked.

So - how am I picking myself up from this?

I'm keeping the same work out routine for the next 3 weeks. It was very doable and I'm not P90X sore, so it's managable.
I'm not getting on the scale until weigh in day.  (Daily weigh ins is playing a dangerous game with a scale obsession. Today is my highest weigh in all week.)
I'm buying a tape measure TODAY and recording my measurements.
I'm going to post accurate "before" photos and measurements this week either on this blog or my blog.

I'm so sick of this yo-yo-coaster. Time to get off.

Working our way back

After such a disappointing week it was nice to shed some of the weight we had put back on. Who knew that one week could unravel everything that we had worked so hard for? It was such a good feeling to work off some of extra pounds. Losing weight together is truly no easy feat. Every day together has just been such an amazing experience that we seem to want to celebrate it by eating out on town. We cannot keep up this train if we want to lose the pounds that we want to. Not only does the food at restaurants contain more calories but also loads of sodium. And if that wasn't bad enough we almost always get dessert. We need to nip this trend in the butt and fast. Life for us will always be a celebration however we need to find more creative and less unhealthy alternatives to do so. I know that we will be better down the road. It will just take some adjustments down the road. I know that we will prevail in the long run and we both knew we would have to get over a few hills along the way. However we need to still do our part in not helping to create these hills.

Baseballs Games, Date nights, Easter, and Lessons in Distraction

I take complete responsibility for putting Sean and I above almost 20 lbs from our goal, that was only 9 pounds away a few short weeks ago.

When he arrived in Washington, I wanted to step out, see the sites, try the food, and celebrate. And I didn't want to stop. It was oh-so-easy to give into those cravings, so while he only put on a 2-3 pounds, I packed on over 6.  Between the baseball game, dining out, and a date night or two, I slipped on the pounds.

So - what went wrong? I can't very well blame my teammate for my weight gain.

Here's the biggest thing I noticed:


I got distracted. Not that I didn't have good reason to be distracted, but I lost focus on using the tools that have helped me get here thus far. I went from a women who logged into MyFitnessPal.com several times a day to keep my calories in check to someone who almost remembered some days.  Instead of looking at my calorie count every am and working within that, I have been eating what I think I can get away with and then logging it later to find out I'm WAY over calories and WAY under workout.

How to fix that?
Here are my 3 simple steps to help improve my behavior:
Adjust scheduling to include working out on a regular 5 night a week schedule.
Log into MyFitnessPal several times a day.
Make 2 motivational posts (this blog or my personal blog) once a week.

Reality of the situation is, this is a set back. But it's one I can learn from. While Sean and I both are working on losing weight, our fitness goals are different and our bodies work differently to achieve those goals. We'll work out together, but I can't eat what he eats all the time. But I know he's there to support me all the way and help me. No more celebrating. Time for real life.

9 Pounds to Go!

Sean is in the air somewhere between Michigan and Florida, so we're giving him a pass on the weigh in this week and keeping him at the same weight. But I'm happy to report that I'm down one pound this week, leaving 9lbs to go!

I attribute the weight loss this week to the challegen my mom issued. We work out 3 days a week and stay accountable for it.

Working out allows me a bit more freedom in my calorie intake. Also, I eat at home A LOT. That saves a lot of money, and time. Lean Cuisine has been my friend until I get a microwave here. But I actually think it's been a healthy change, not to have a microwave around. I eat my meals in courses now. I'll make a big salad and eat that in the 35-45 minutes it takes for my entree to cook, so I get my veggies in.

I'm FINALLY sleeping better as well since this place is starting to feel more and more like home.

I'm looking forward to going out tonight though! But this blog isn't about that. You can check that out on my other blog.

A challenge with My Mom

There may or may not be a weigh in this week. Sean is in the middle of his move and will be leaving for Michigan on the weigh in day.

But this week my mom and I decided to do a 3 day/week workout challenge. She has a treadmill in her house and is NOT struggling with obesity, but she does struggle with a high stress job. High amounts of stress take a toll on the body. So the deal is Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, we each have to work out and tell each other about it.

Well, Monday was a bit of a bust for me. I took Clydas for a long walk, but I couldn't get into the Fitness center due to some key mix up, so I ended up making my Monday work out up on Tuesday.

31 minutes on the eliptical keeping my heart rate just over 160 most of the time.
So for HeTookMyLastName, here is the proof!
Not bad for my first time back on a machine in over a week.

10 pounds to go!

Sean and I have 10 lbs to go before we reach our next goal!  I lost one this week, and although he's been eating right and increased his cardio, his body hasn't quite gotten the message yet. I can tell that he's gained energy though and, perhaps more importantly, the regular work outs has helped him deal with the stress of moving.
I'm seem to be steadily losing a pound a week. While that seems terribly slow sometimes, I'm pretty satisified with it. Afterall, I am looking to lose 30-35lbs total. So if I lose 1 lb a week consistantly I'd reach my stretch goal of 170 (175 may be more healthy for me, but I won't know that until I'm closer to it) in under 9 months. That's less than a year! DEFINATELY nothing to sneeze at.

I'm sure once we're more local, we'll be going out more, but I'm sure we'll be able to keep it under control (financially and otherwise). Thankfully, he'll be moving AWAY from a place where butter is a spice and gravy is a beverage.  I can pretty much still get all my light Californian foods up here in Washington. I just eat more soup to counteract the cold.

But it's a sunny day today (sunny and 30 degrees), and my heart is in Kings Bay, GA as Sean graduates from all of his training out there. I wish I could be there, but I know it's a great chance for him to have fun with his mates. 

Jaime, and her wonderful determination, has lost yet another 1lb this week which is quite an accomplishment considering all the stress from having to finish packing, saying her goodbyes, and dealing with quite a few last minute details before her big move. Right now she is on her way to Port Orchard, WA and I only hope that with having to eat out most the weekend she can continue her downward trend. She is an inspiration to behold. I, on the other hand, have finally gotten over my plateau. Losing 2 lbs this week I feel quite accomplished at 205 lbs. 25 more lbs to go until I hit my goal weight. I have a feeling that in a few weeks when I will have more cookware at my disposal and can actually control exactly what is in my food intake things will start moving forward a little bit smoother. Hopefully another plateau can be avoided and in a 2 months or less I can be at or at least very close to my goal. So all in all things are looking good for us. Overall we have both lost weight and I know that personally I feel much healthier than a few years ago. I can say that Jaime probably feels the same way. Pretty soon we can keep each other more accountable since we will basically be living together. When I move I will start using www.MyFitnessPal.com to keep track of my calories. So to all of you who are trying to lose weight have heart there are plenty of tools out there to use, you just gotta take a few minutes to look.