- Going Back to A Round of Words
- Kicking off A Round of Words
- Talking about weight loss.
- The first check mark
- Checking in for me
- A week of editing.
- Jumping tracks.
- A health check up.
- Hot potato! Hot potato!
- Making a commitment.
- Still going strong!
- Slow and steady. Kind of. Okay, not this week!
- Coming in for my crash landing!
- Goodye #ROW80
Originally this post was going up as a stand alone update about me because I felt like talking about my progress. Then Monday and the kick off to A Round of Words in 80 Days began and I started reading posts and a lot of people were including health and life goals alongside their writing goals. It was too late to change mine and add things, so I figured why not do another post and talk about what’s going on? Because clearly I’m lacking words.
I’ve made no secret of the fact that I’m on a Jenny Craig diet. The facts are I stink at figuring out what is healthy, what I should eat and shouldn’t, and I needed help. Jenny Craig, while pricey, offered me exactly what I needed, and it’s been working.
I debated on including numbers in this blog post, and I realized: what does it matter if I tell you how much I weigh? It doesn’t. I talked to a friend of mine and we compared weights. We have an inch height difference. She weighs something much less than I do, and yet I look smaller than she does. The lesson? We all carry weight differently.
A year ago I was starting to push 200 pounds. I never crossed that threshold, but it was a close call. My biggest motivators for going on a strict diet were many.
- I was no longer comfortable in my own skin.
- Health.
- Feeling positive about myself.
- Being healthy.
Do you see a pattern here?
The number one reason I decided to make this move was for my health. I’ve watched my father and sister have a host of health issues which could be greatly improved by losing weight and just being healthier over all. I want to live a long life. I want to enjoy myself. And a lot of that will not happen if I don’t make changes to my lifestyle now.
I have loads of self confidence, but even I was beginning to be conscious of my size, trying to cover myself up with bigger clothing. And you know what? I hated shopping for bigger clothes, I couldn’t fit into what I had and I didn’t like what I found. I wasn’t happy and it’s hard to feel good about yourself in that situation.
To date I’ve lost almost twenty pounds. I think the exact number according to my JC coach is 14, but that’s weighing me at the heaviest point in my day. I’m usually 2 pounds lighter any other time except when I step in that dang office! So I’m between 14 and 16 pounds lost, as of last week, when I had my official weigh in. Can I just say 20 pounds? It makes me feel better since it’s 1/3 of the way to what I want to lose.
In the picture on the left is a shot of me last November, and on the right is from a few weeks ago. I can also say I’ve lost about four pounds since I took that picture, so I’m smaller. My measurements have gone down by about eight inches in three of the four major body areas. Want to guess where I’m not decreasing? *sigh*
My progress is slow, but healthy and that’s what I’m truly happy about. My weight loss coach can bemoan my slow losing ever week all she wants, but each week I go down a little. It’s not easy. I crave Dr Pepper, chocolate, queso, chips, brisket tacos, french fries and all sorts of bad-for-me stuff, but going through my closet and putting on something I haven’t worn for a year is an even better feeling.
Some things that have helped me:
- Regular check ins. I do this at the Jenny Craig office and I think that motivation helps. I have to tell someone my progress each week.
- Cutting out Dr Pepper. Okay so I still drink some, but I keep it to a minimum.
- Water. I drink a lot of water now.
- Mio. This is a water enhancer. It doesn’t contain caffeine, though there is a version now that does, I don’t drink it.
- Fresh foods. I eat a lot of fresh veggie and fruit snacks instead of processed stuff.
- Portion sizes. I still eat out, but I eat less and I’m able to still enjoy the novelty of eating out, and I make meals last longer.
I’m about a third of the way to my goal. If I get there I’m going to be a tiny little thing and I might just love it.
For the sake of establishing some ROW 80 related goals, over the next three months here’s what I want to do:
- Stick to my Jenny Craig plan. It works. Don’t give up on it.
- With two big conferences coming up and no way to eat my JC food, I need to be mindful of what I’m eating and portion sizes.
- I’d like to lose another ten pounds between now and the end of the year. That would almost put me halfway to my goal. I’ve been losing at about a pound a week, but I’m going to discount two weeks in ROW because of conferences.
Here’s a funny story that was kinda embarrassing and yet made me feel good about myself.
This last weekend was a really big cycling event, and anyone who knows me also knows that my mom is an ultimate cyclist, does a lot of road biking stuff, and I crew for her regularly. That was what I did this last weekend, while bands of rain from a dying hurricane battered at us through the whole race. Seriously, rain, rain everywhere, and I was the only smart person who thought to wear wellies. Seriously. Anyways, this race was on a circular "track" of county roads so I sat at a pit area and waited for her to come around, trade out her bottles of water and spiz for new bottles and get her whatever she wanted. It had begun to rain harder later in the afternoon and as she pulled in for a stop she asked for a rain proof vest in her bag o’ stuff in the car. Waaaaaaaay over there. So me being the race minded daughter that I am, take off running for the car — and I lost my pants. My TIGHT pants. They were still totally dry, I’d been rather lucky with my rain coat until after this incident and they were dry. And I pretty much showed the whole pit line my panties. Not that anyone noticed, because they were all looking in the other direction for their riders, but I’m pretty sure the cute cyclist saw because he was laughing at me every time I saw him after that. Oh well. My pants are so big I have to roll them down and they still slide off. Guess it’s time to go dig through my closet for a smaller size!
Do you have any tips, tricks or hints about what’s worked shed some of that unwanted weight?
That may be my favorite evidence of weight loss story ever! Congratulations on working on a healthier you! (And feel free to change your goals at any time–the adaptability is what makes ROW80 unique. Life happens and/or we might think of something to add later. It’s cool. Just throw it in a check in post like you did here.
Kait Nolan recently posted..A Precious and Plotting Surprises
LOL! Glad I could be amusing. It was funny, and thankfully the cycling crowd is pretty good natured about that sort of thing and didn’t even bat an eyelash.
Sidney recently posted..Talking about weight loss.
Slow progress is better than none and sometimes better than a fast loss. Congrats on being able to loss that much weight and good luck on losing the rest so you can be healthy and confident.
Fallon recently posted..Writing Wednesday: My Writing Process & First Check-In
I totally agree. When I was younger I had some pretty serious anorexia issues and I’d suggest a slow, healthy loss over that binge loosing to anyone.
Sidney recently posted..Talking about weight loss.
I’ve currently lost 15 pounds. Well, 10 since I’ve been weighing myself but for the first 6 weeks I didn’t weigh myself and I know I lost at least 1 pound a week in those 6 weeks. I’ve done it through MyFitnessPal. It’s a great online community. I log my calories every day and weigh in once a week. My goal is to lose 1 lb a week and I’ve been very consistent doing that. They even have an app so you can log on the go.
I don’t deny myself anything. I eat out frequently. I just track my calories and know I have 1500 to spend throughout the day. If I know I’m going out to dinner then I hoard my calories and eat small meals throughout the day and save the majority for the restaurant.
I have to say, MFP has been a godsend to me. The people there are so supportive.
Congrats on your weight loss! I know how hard it is. And that losing-your-pants thing? At MFP we call that an NVS = Non Scale Victory.
Keep it up!!!
Sharon Cullen recently posted..Merry….Christmas?
I tried MFP for a bit, but I was just transferring the calories I already knew I was eating on the JC diet into the plan so it seemed like a time sink for me I could do without. I really like the face-to-face interaction I get when I go in for my weigh-in’s.
Sidney recently posted..Talking about weight loss.
Hi Sydney,
Can I just say…You look maahvalous! and I admire your dedication to get healthier. I’m on that quest too. Don’t worry about slow progress. From what I hear, that’s the best way to go. Kudos on the cycling event! I’m still working up to getting on my stationary bike and actually pedaling. 🙂
Amazing story and photos, Sid–so so proud of you. I have struggled with my weight ever since I was a little girl and having two kids didn’t help at all. Believe it or not, I lost the most weight I’ve ever lost while writing my first novel. I was so obsessed and amped up about it, that I didn’t snack, didn’t bother with sweets, and exercised every day to give my body something to do while I worked out plot points. Worked like a charm. I’m happy to say I’m 35 pounds lighter than I was when I got married and I’ve maintained for 3 years. I’m even two sizes smaller than I was when I graduated from high school. Still would like to lose another 10 though. *sigh* I guess it never ends.
Karen Booth recently posted..Indulgent Blog Hop, For Keeps, and Giveaway!
Those pictures are inspirational, they must make you smile and thanks for sharing your funny pant losing story. 😀 I think our moms would have get along well. She’s always running some race. I started my healthy journey last summer and so far I’ve lost 35 pounds, not bad, but those last 5 are going to be the death of me, lol. But, it’s not about the number, it’s about how I feel. You’re doing all the kinds of things I am, the only thing I can add is to make sure you’re getting enough rest and to trust in the process. You may do the same thing for two-weeks in a row and one week will result in a loss and the other a gain. But over the course of the journey the process will get you there.
S. J. Maylee recently posted..LOOK! A Writing Challenge with Taking Chances
You look great, Sid. This is a very inspirational post! I’ve been terrible about running since I got back from the states, but this week I’ve been walking with Cupcake in the evenings, though still not as much as I could be. I’ll definitely be increasing how much I work out after reading this. <3
I love the pants story.
Alice Janell recently posted..Jelawat
Great post, Sidney. Personally, I think you’re crazy for wanting to lose inches up top, but I admit there’s a bit of boob-envy in there! 😉 Seriously, you look great.
You know I’m a gym-a-holic. I get asked fairly regularly for tips, and one of the main things I tell people is not to “cut out” all of the foods that they love to eat. Learning to moderate intake is always better, because, odds are, you’ll just go back to eating it later if you’ve given it up now. (Then it’s usually binge city…a bad place to visit, even if you’re not watching your weight!)
From your post, it sounds like you’re doing things exactly right. Slow, steady and smart. And with your dedication, I know you’ll get where you want to be. Keep doing what you’re doing! 🙂
Karla Doyle recently posted..The Look Meme
Just love this post – I’ve been so impressed with how well you’ve stuck to JC and I see why. Wonderful! Slow and steady is good and you are doing fabulous and looking marvelous.
I may be grinning about the pants incident though… yes, get some pants that fit! Toss those things away, you won’t need them again!
What a great post! Congrats on the weight loss, your hard work is paying off and you look absolutely beautiful. I love the pants story!
Sophia Parkwood recently posted..The Week in Review
Looking great, Sidney!
I don’t have Jenny Craig here, so I can’t do something like that, but like you, I’m watching portion sizes and eliminating most processed foods. I find I’m feeling much better without all that stuff in my body anyway. So far, so good. I can’t wait to be able to show such amazing before and after(during) pics to inspire as you have.