Thursday, January 15, 2009

Mediocre results

I thought I was fired up about this next chapter of weight loss. So why don't I feel the slightest bit guilty when I have chips with my burrito at lunch? Last year, the thought wouldn't have entered my mind to even consider such an act. This year, I'm tossing back the chips without a single remorse. Does that mean I'm not ready to really give this my all? Do I need a competition of some sort to give me that extra motivational push? I wish I understood the big mental difference between my success and drive last year vs. this year. It's all very confusing.

On the upside, I have worked out consistently since Jan 1. I'm walking a little taller. I feel a little stronger. I don't think twice about getting out of bed in the morning for a work out. That's progress. And as work is keeping me busier lately, I find myself walking a lot more from building to building for meetings. A little extra cardio throughout the day is always good.

I wish the results on the scale better reflected the consistent workouts and generally healthy eating. But clearly those occasional dietary splurges are impacting the numbers. Dang it, I thought I'd get away with it! I lost 3 lbs the first week which was great but compared to the 8 lbs I lost in week 1 last year, it was disheartening. My head knew it would be harder this time but my heart was still holding out hope for big numbers! To add insult to injury, I weighed in today and discovered I barely lost a single pound in the second week. Seeing that lackluster loss on the scale hit me in a different way. I'm not disappointed, I'm MAD. All that sweating. All those early mornings. All those salads. FOR A MEASLY POUND. Are you kidding me?

Which leaves me with the big questions. The questions which ultimately determine success. Will I find a way to channel that anger productively? Or will the slow progress be enough to derail my efforts entirely?

4 comments:

La Maestra January 15, 2009 at 2:43 PM  

I lost about 10 lbs a couple of years ago following a program from an all-women fitness center. One of the things I learned was that if you hit a plateau, you actually need to eat more. Not a box of donuts washed down with chocolate milk and 3 bags of chips more, but enough to rev things up a bit. Once you've gained a pound back, start back on the stricter diet. I found it really hard when trying to lose weight to eat more, especially to try to gain weight, but supposedly this works.

**I'm not a doctor or an expert or a nutritionist or anything really, I just thought I would share.

Anonymous January 16, 2009 at 4:20 AM  

All I can say is that it is difficult watching every bite that you put in your mouth!!!! Most people gain back their weight loss the next year, so if you're losing --THAT's GOOD!! Don't be so hard on yourself. You did it last year and it was new and this year it becomes harder. More power to you for continuing--try to establish habits that you'll continue for your life! --Mom

The Tucson Gang January 16, 2009 at 5:54 AM  

Dude - 3 lbs in the first week is awesome! 4lbs in 2 weeks is better than average - the dr tells me, 1-2 lbs a month is what you're likely to maintain...so you're doing awesome. I think it's really hard to eat perfectly and exercise more at the same time. I too haven't been able to control all the food I've been injesting - but have made some really good choices and additions to my diet routine - like more veggies and have increased my exercise. I've haven't weighed in yet - but I feel stronger and healthier and for now that's success...I'm hoping weight loss occurs as these changes become permanent or at least not so "new"...losing weight is super hard - stay motivated. I was so impressed w/your results last year and if you stay w/it this year - you'll see results too - just maybe not as fast. Hang in there sista!

Anonymous January 23, 2009 at 10:18 PM  

I'm sure you've heard the story about starting with a penny and compounding it for 30 days into 10 million dollars by doubling the value every day. Well...recently I heard the same concept explained for your health. 95% of people give up on working out, eating right, making the right choices each day because you work hard at it for a week, even 2 weeks, and see no results (hey man I only have a couple cents here, is it really worth the effort). Well if you stay at it day after day after day those cents turn into millions and the same goes for your health. Your body will be thanking you and you'll feel like 10 million dollars too!
Hopefully that'll help boost your commitment level this year. You had such an awesome year last year, you CAN do it again this year!

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