Weight Loss Update - Week 9
Back on track! Phew! I was hoping that last week was just due to vacationing and not due to some big plateau I have been trying to avoid.
We are down 6 pounds this week after being scared into submission last week and continue to feel motivated to lose the weight.
Goal Weight = 220 lbs
Starting Weight 5/23/2011 = 312 lbs
Week 1 Weight 5/27/2011 = 307 lbs
Week 2 Weight 6/3/2011=301 lbs
Week 3 Weight 6/10/2011 = 296 lbs
week 4 Weight 6/17/2011 = 292 lbs
Week 5 Weight 6/24/2011 = 287 lbs
Week 6 Weight 7/1/2011 = 282 lbs
Week 7 Weight 7/8/2011 = 277 lbs
Week 8 Weight 7/15/2011 = 276 lbs
This week, Week 9 Weight 7/22/2011 = 270 lbs
That's a total of 42 pounds gone!
I have had a few people ask what I am doing to lose the weight. I will tell you, but mostly it is just magic.
It's not like I wanted to get 100 pounds overweight. I recall one night eating some ice cream, finishing off my bowl thinking, 'boy, this is not good for me, I should not eat this'.
I then went and had another helping.
That is the mind set I had. And I will bet many others who are 100 pounds overweight could share similar stories of just caving into the caloric temptations of chips, ice cream, bread - vast amounts of it, any ways - I would go buy a loaf of french bread for lunch, and by the time I got home that day, it was mostly gone - Wow! Today I realize the need for carbs, but the necessity to limit my bread intake is one of the biggest temptations I deal with.
The magic is motivation. Or perhaps the motivation is the magic. Either way, I couldn't do it without that internal motivation. And I can't tell you how to get that. You have to want it, I guess. I admit I used the Biggest Loser and the current running Extreme Makeover: Weight Loss Edition to help. But this motivation is causing me to say no to candy, chips, extra helpings etc. It also motivates me to get out and get to the gym without fail.
With that said, I am watching and limiting my caloric intake. As stated before in a post, I am using a program at loseit.com - as an app on my IPhone it makes it easier, though Tiffany uses it via loseit.com and is being successful as well. If I am honest with entering the foods I eat, it will help me track how much I have eaten and will help me know how much more I can or cannot eat. It also tracks my nutrients so I can ensure that I don't get empty calories, but one that will help my body maintain a high metabolic rate, increasing my ability to burn calories throughout the day.
In addition to watching those intake calories, I am watching my outgoing calories. That usually means cardio. And lots of it. I usually spend about 30 minutes a day with some weights. I then spend an hour to an hour and a half on the treadmill, usually just walking. Or perhaps speed walking. By the time my hour is up, I am walking at a clip just below running speed with a full incline on the machine.
My idea here is not to work on endurance cardio. In fact, I don't want my body to become efficient yet. Not while I am trying to lose weight. I want it to burn as many calories as it can, and the more it becomes efficient, the less I will lose as a result. So I am using the muscle confusion method. Changing my workouts enough that my body doesn't know how best to conform to what I am doing. That would include stationary bikes, hiking, aerobics (which I hate, but have to admit, they are probably the best at muscle confusion), and changing my walking speed, incline, time, etc.
So far it has been working. I would expect that as I get closer to my goal weight it will be harder to lose the pounds I have been, but I also bet that if I keep this up, I will be able to get there quicker.
So there it is. Losing weight is akin to magic. And don't think it is not. Because I don't really know why I feel motivated more now than I did before.
But then again, I am not done yet, so I ought to be careful what I suggest. But I wish to thank all those that have continued to encourage me and respond to my goals and plans. You continue to help me to stay motivated.
Thank you,
Cheers,
Nathan
We are down 6 pounds this week after being scared into submission last week and continue to feel motivated to lose the weight.
Goal Weight = 220 lbs
Starting Weight 5/23/2011 = 312 lbs
Week 1 Weight 5/27/2011 = 307 lbs
Week 2 Weight 6/3/2011=301 lbs
Week 3 Weight 6/10/2011 = 296 lbs
week 4 Weight 6/17/2011 = 292 lbs
Week 5 Weight 6/24/2011 = 287 lbs
Week 6 Weight 7/1/2011 = 282 lbs
Week 7 Weight 7/8/2011 = 277 lbs
Week 8 Weight 7/15/2011 = 276 lbs
This week, Week 9 Weight 7/22/2011 = 270 lbs
That's a total of 42 pounds gone!
I have had a few people ask what I am doing to lose the weight. I will tell you, but mostly it is just magic.
It's not like I wanted to get 100 pounds overweight. I recall one night eating some ice cream, finishing off my bowl thinking, 'boy, this is not good for me, I should not eat this'.
I then went and had another helping.
That is the mind set I had. And I will bet many others who are 100 pounds overweight could share similar stories of just caving into the caloric temptations of chips, ice cream, bread - vast amounts of it, any ways - I would go buy a loaf of french bread for lunch, and by the time I got home that day, it was mostly gone - Wow! Today I realize the need for carbs, but the necessity to limit my bread intake is one of the biggest temptations I deal with.
The magic is motivation. Or perhaps the motivation is the magic. Either way, I couldn't do it without that internal motivation. And I can't tell you how to get that. You have to want it, I guess. I admit I used the Biggest Loser and the current running Extreme Makeover: Weight Loss Edition to help. But this motivation is causing me to say no to candy, chips, extra helpings etc. It also motivates me to get out and get to the gym without fail.
With that said, I am watching and limiting my caloric intake. As stated before in a post, I am using a program at loseit.com - as an app on my IPhone it makes it easier, though Tiffany uses it via loseit.com and is being successful as well. If I am honest with entering the foods I eat, it will help me track how much I have eaten and will help me know how much more I can or cannot eat. It also tracks my nutrients so I can ensure that I don't get empty calories, but one that will help my body maintain a high metabolic rate, increasing my ability to burn calories throughout the day.
In addition to watching those intake calories, I am watching my outgoing calories. That usually means cardio. And lots of it. I usually spend about 30 minutes a day with some weights. I then spend an hour to an hour and a half on the treadmill, usually just walking. Or perhaps speed walking. By the time my hour is up, I am walking at a clip just below running speed with a full incline on the machine.
My idea here is not to work on endurance cardio. In fact, I don't want my body to become efficient yet. Not while I am trying to lose weight. I want it to burn as many calories as it can, and the more it becomes efficient, the less I will lose as a result. So I am using the muscle confusion method. Changing my workouts enough that my body doesn't know how best to conform to what I am doing. That would include stationary bikes, hiking, aerobics (which I hate, but have to admit, they are probably the best at muscle confusion), and changing my walking speed, incline, time, etc.
So far it has been working. I would expect that as I get closer to my goal weight it will be harder to lose the pounds I have been, but I also bet that if I keep this up, I will be able to get there quicker.
So there it is. Losing weight is akin to magic. And don't think it is not. Because I don't really know why I feel motivated more now than I did before.
But then again, I am not done yet, so I ought to be careful what I suggest. But I wish to thank all those that have continued to encourage me and respond to my goals and plans. You continue to help me to stay motivated.
Thank you,
Cheers,
Nathan
Keep up the good work! May I suggest the reason you feel more motivated? It's Newton's 1st law of motion that says: "A body in motion tends to say in motion and a body at rest tends to stay at rest unless some outside force acts upon it." Question becomes, what is that force that acts upon one to keep one from remaining at rest? Once one finds that force and gets in motion then that motion will tend to remain! (Until some other force acts. Of course). Pretty simple huh?!?
ReplyDeleteI very often have people ask me what I do to stay in shape and though it's vastly different to your "magic method," I've determined a few things, let me share one! People overall lack the knowledge of what food truly is and should be used for. What our body's need are rarely found in today's food. It's all processed junk and we're sold on this idea that if it's low fat, low carb, fiber filled net carbs, artificially sweetened etc. we're told that its good for you and people believe it and get more unhealthy! Remember we need to eat to live, not live to eat. But enjoy an serving of ice cream once in awhile!