Over the top with Jen. (HJ)

I don't want to admit what's happened this end.

I don't want anyone to know.

I weighed.

It was nasty.

Then I went to a church morning tea.

There were pikelets and lamingtons.

And then this afternoon I found out that they are planning for my class' 20 year reunion next year.

That should be motivation, surely?

I really need to do something.

Comments on this blog

Sorry to do this but I have had to alter comment permissions so that ONLY members of this blog (ie, people who can post) are able to post comments. We had been getting a lot of spam comments so I turned on word verification and turned off anonymous commenting but it made no difference at all - we've still been getting five or six spam comments per post.

Sigh. I really hate having to crack down on comments and to block non-members but it's become simply ridiculous. If you are not currently a member of the blog and you would like to be, please drop me an email at reachingforgreen@gmail.com.
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I think I'm back (Emily Sue)

I can't remember the last time I posted and I can't remember what I weighed then, but I know for sure I've put on weight since then. In fact I think I'm at my heaviest Skinny Cow weight now and I'm only about 7kg off the weight I was when I joined Weight Watchers several years ago. Sigh. That's NOT good.

So... remember all my grand plans? Fit by 40? C25K? Ahem... yeah, not doing so well. Actually I was doing well on C25K (and by extension, on Fit by 40) but then I injured my ankle and by the time it finally healed my motivation had packed up and moved north to a little beachside cottage. Who could blame it, really?

But anyway, now I'm back. I just did Week 1, Day 1 of C25K and I didn't die so I reckon that's an excellent start. It was hard but not so hard as it was the very first time I did it so I suppose that means I haven't lost ALL the fitness I gained... just MOST of it. Still, I'm pretty pleased to have dusted off the treadmill and actually done something. Feel free to motivate me (ie, nag).

Heading in the Right Direction! (HJ)

I said to Emily Sue earlier this week that I couldn't wait to weigh-in this week because I've rowed every day for 30 minutes. Even when I had to get up before 7am in order to fit it in before work.

And as these things go I felt brilliant after rowing on Thursday and then had to push myself the whole way through Friday. Why aren't the results the same every time? I'm rowing later in the day today, because I didn't feel like getting all hot and sweaty first up this morning.

But the really good thing is that (even with all the muscle-building rowing I did) I lost 800g. That's very nearly close to a whole kilogram.

So, the results stand at 79kg and going down!

Oh, and the good news is that I wasn't being overly careful what I ate.

I weighed. I rowed. (HJ)

The title is heralding the bad news/good news that is my Saturday morning.


I weighed. 79.8kg. Not quite the 80kg that I've been hoping I don't tip over, and I think a little heavier than my last attempt. But I didn't mention numbers last time, and I didn't write it down in my trendy spreadsheet that tracks my weightloss (or lack thereof). So I'm claiming 100g off my last previous recorded weigh-in, even if I think it was actually a 300g increase from memory.

On the good side - after holidays; starting rowing; getting a bad chesty cold that stopped me rowing; going to a church meeting where I essentially ate and sat; and then a food-fest visit from one of my favourite Victorians (although we DID walk - aren't we good?) I am back on the rowing machine.

I have done my 30 mins for three days running now.

I am very proud of that.

Even if for a few days there I couldn't raise my hands above my head without pain.

And of course, that would be making me heavier. All that muscle developing as the fat starts to drop off.

And while I would like to get back into my skinny clothes (I'm stretching my fat clothes at the moment), and I would like to look skinnier, and I would like the numbers on the scales to head in a downwards direction, what I really want is to be able to walk without puffing and feel stronger in body and mind. And that is starting to begin to commence to happen.

So for this week I am content. (as long as I don't contemplate how on earth I managed to put on nearly 12kg without thinking about it - or, more to the point, without doing anything about it)

But I rowed. Peace and Serenity to you all this lovely Saturday morning...

Reality

I seem to have stabilised and hovering around the new numbers. I'd love to drop another 5 k, then another 2, but for now I will see if I can remain stable over winter.

By my scale, that gives me a 16 - 18 kilo loss.

I was gobsmacked to buy size 10 jeans (OK, granted they were a big make, but I will take what I can!) and wear a youth's medium sized T shirt on the weekend.

Reality came back when I was fitted for a new bra - 14F.

Somethings never change.

I weighed (HJ)

It wasn't as bad as I'd hoped.

Less than the horrible round number I never want to reach.

But still more than I was when we started this thing. *sigh*

I am pleading a bad cold which hit my lungs, making exercise impossible. I was needing a rest after such heavy tasks as walking up one flight of stairs and hanging out a load of washing.

I have a meeting this weekend, so there won't be any weighing. But I will be trying to be good, and I'll also be hitting the rowing machine when I return. I was getting a good 20 minutes in before this cold. I hope it won't take long to get back to that.

So I'm still not weighing in...

I told you I wouldn't, and I haven't, and I still have no desire to.

But (and this is a big but - perhaps even bigger than mine) I have been trying to eat better (although with no actual plan) and I have started rowing again.

I started with 5 mins with stretches fore and aft (and sideways too), and have been working it up slowly. After hitting the 10 minute mark with no total muscle stiffness-to-the-point-of-pain I've jumped up to 15 and then 20 minutes this morning. I'm aiming to get back to my 30 minutes, preferably 3 or 4 times a week.

On the other hand, I haven't been walking regularly. The LBD did enjoy one afternoon out, but I haven't got enthusiastic again. I must because it does wonders for my mental health; the LBD enjoys it; and it is after all physical activity.

When I'm up to doing 30 mins on the rowing machine I'm going to start pestering my Beloved to fix my bike's brake so that I might be able to do some of my everyday trips on bike rather than car. My town is only about 10 minutes in the car to anywhere - and the time wasting part is getting into the car and finding a park at the other end. I can walk to town in 30 minutes, and the bike is somewhere between. Exercise that is incidental to daily routine is much better for me - and it would be excellent to be riding a bike that has brakes on both the front and rear wheels, rather than just the front (particularly when I consider the hill I live on).

So whilst I'm still holding out on the actual weighing thing, I am doing some things that might help in the reduction of Jen prior to that deadline. Two more Saturdays to go...

Had one of those moments earlier this week. Was going to a funeral and wanted to wear my good suit pants. They are very snug. Mum suggested yesterday that I probably shouldn't be wearing them, because I might split the seams (thanks, Mum) but I had nothing else good enough to wear to a funeral. So there definitely needs to be less of Jen. I'm just hoping by weigh-in day I'm under the scary big round number that I don't want to think about.

Fingers crossed.

And the whole holiday was not about food... (HJ)

... but much of it was.

As an international traveller I can tell you lots about complimentary breakfasts.

1. Continental Breakfast - either the hotel is cheap, or I am. Dry toast and soggy cereal and maybe a croissant if you're lucky. Why bother?

2. English Breakfast - toast and eggs and bacon and baked beans and maybe a grilled tomato. Pretty darn good!

3. Asian Breakfast - all of the above, plus various noodle and stir-fry dishes, roti canai (an indian bread with yummy sauce stuff), pancakes, danishes (in one place bread and butter pudding!?!) A choice of omlette or eggs the way you like them (boiled, fried, scrambled), rice porridge etc, etc, etc. Really yummy and lots of it and you don't actually need lunch.

4. American Breakfast - the last hotel we stayed at had a buffet Amercian breakfast. I was interested to see what it included to make it different to the Asian ones we'd been having. The main difference was that the food was cold and there wasn't as much choice. I don't know if the food being cold was done on purpose, but srispy cold hash browns don't really cut it (and I LOVE hash browns).

Anyway, I'm giving myself three weeks before I think about getting on the scales, because I DON'T WANT TO KNOW. Okay with everybody?

Not weighing in until I'm home (HJ)

Things have been busy. I have been comfort eating instead of taking time to rest. I am now on holidays and let's face it, I'm not going to weigh in until I'm home. I might not even do it then if I end up doing a food tour of Malaysia. Thankfully they don't yet make the passengers get on the scales before they board the plane.

See you all later!!

Hippomanic Jen

Weigh In Wednesday (Emily Sue)

Last week: 71.9
Today: 72.4
Difference: 500g gain

Yeah... I've started eating again. :)  I have, however, mostly just been eating normal meals and not a lot of snacky stuff so I think this is just bouncing back to 'normal' after the too-busy-to-eat thing. And it's 400g less than I was a fortnight ago so I'm still happy.

Hmmm... and exercise. Still haven't done any, apart from a half hour walk yesterday with a friend. This week - I swear!

Hard-Core (Manda)

I am officially going hard-core. No more wishy-washy, "I can eat this and this and this and maybe I'll still lose a little bit of weight" thoughts. No more gradually fitting into my pants less and less.

NO MORE!

Inspired by the success of Eizelby, I've decided not to "try" any more, but to actually do it! This means changing the way I think (I've found "I feel better if I don't snack much" and "I will feel better after this party if I have only had one dessert" to be working so far). It means eating more salads as meals, rather than something I only get to after two other courses. It means eating "3/4 serves" at dinner as the food is delicious and I tend to go overboard (and what I feel to be 3/4 is probably a real serve anyway).

Long term goal: get to 68 by September.
Short term goal: If I get to 73 before April 6, I get a massage.
Last week: 74
This week: 73.2!

I lost some weight for the first time in a while! Now to keep going.

Long time no being accounted for! (Eizelby)

Hello fellow aspiring cows! It sure has been awhile! The archives tell me that my last update was in July, which shames me. I’m sorry!

To refresh your memories of where I left off, I was about 2kg within sight of my goal weight. Since then I managed to get through summer camp season with maintained weight loss, and in December hit my goal weight of 65kg – which was very exciting! I then somehow lost another kilogram, and sat at 64kg for about a week before starting a slow, steady gain again.

However, despite a recent birthday binge and general disregard for healthy eating habits, the scales have been kind to me. I do suspect that this reflects loss of muscle due to a decrease in my regular walking, but it’s still somewhat encouraging.

So, where to now?
I’m currently sitting at 66kg – one kilo above my original goal weight. Having tasted 64kg for the first time in ages, I think with a bit of self discipline I can maintain that weight in a long-term capacity. That is my new goal!

How do I plan to achieve this?
Starting fulltime work and gaining a boyfriend in the past few months have culminated in me pretty much farewelling regular exercise, and saying hello to poor eating habits, such as drinking daily iced coffees and making pizza at midnight. No more I say!

To reach and maintain my goal weight, I will …
- join the dance studio which has branches both near my house and workplace
- get off my tram 3 stops early and walk the rest of the way EVERY TIME
- redevelop the magical habit of saying “no” to yummy things
- not eat after dinner – this does wonders for the waist and leaves me feeling great in the morning!

Goals and rewards
My goal is to lose 2kg, and to generally get a bit fitter than I currently am. My reward is feeling great, and a new pair of jeans.

Weigh In Wednesday... on Thursday (Emily Sue)

Last time: 72.8kg
Today: 71.9kg
Difference: 900g loss

I am ashamed to say this is almost entirely due to being busy/stressed and having neither the time nor the energy to eat very much at all... but you know what? When I see a number like 71.9 after seeing numbers in the 74s, I'm going to blog about it anyway!

Also, it's time for me to try running again to see how my ankle holds up. I've been a bit scared to try, to be honest, because it was pretty painful last time I tried and I'm afraid of injuring it again. However, I'm going to need to start again some time, and gently strengthen it... so feel free to nag me. :D

Weigh-In Weds (Givinya)

So this morning I hopped on the scales ... wait that's not right.  That never works.

So this morning I put my contact lenses in and hopped on the scales (there's nothing sillier than having your weight plainly displayed in huge numbers but not be able to see them, then bending over to see them and bumping your naked ass on the edge of the vanity because you've chosen to weigh in before your shower "to give yourself an edge", har har har!) and the numbers were a huge surprise: 61.7kg.

1.7kgs to my goal weight!

Then I hopped off, went to the toilet and got back on again.

64.7kg.

Scientifically impossible, still encouraging, but NOT 1.7 kgs to my goal weight.

I then drank three sips of water and the scales read 65.7 kg.  So.  You know.  All I can really do is rule out the possibilites that I am over 80kg or under 50kg, that's the best I can tell you.

In terms of oscillating numbers, they've been hovering around the 65s and sometimes breaking into the 64s this week, with a few depressing days of 67s and 68s.  I've never really watched my weight before, but I assume that the ole one about retaining fluid must be correct if those (average) readings are correct.

But I'm not able to blame anything on the time of the month, cos that's not happening for me.  Which is a very good thing and must not be sniffed at.

Speaking of oscillating numbers, my blood pressure is high again, but I just got my (currently low) dose of medication increased so we're not worried.  I'm still reading labels and finding that if you stick to fruit and veges with some clever choices of bread and other foods, it's EASY to stick to a healthy number of mg of sodium a day.  If however you do something RADICAL like eat a rissole, well say goodbye to all your good work.  The western diet sets us up to fail, I tell ya!

Plan:

• stop eating so much bread, woman!  What happened to the 2 slices of heavy grainy stuff a day?
• stop cooking with cream and parmesan.  In particular, stop making this.
• stop enjoying food.

Ha! Like that's ever going to happen!

Anyone want to come over to my place for a risotto party?

Weigh In Wednesday (Emily Sue)

I weighed myself this morning and I seem to weigh the same as last time. This means that the following things have not caught up with me yet:

1. The staff retreat where I ate:
     * Bacon and eggs
     * Filet mignon (which is wrapped in bacon)
     * Chips
     * Chocolate
     * Lemon meringue pie
     * A fantastic risotto
     * Jelly snakes
     * Ice cream (to which we added Maltesers, Smarties and pieces of chocolate)
     * Tim Tams
     * A huge BLT with chips on the side

2. Five days off work, where I ate such things as:
     * Banana cake
     * Choc chips (from the packet)
     * Dark chocolate brownies
     * McDonald's bacon & egg muffin and hash brown (okay, two hash browns)
     * Chocolate

I feel like a ticking time bomb... :)

Coming to a screaming halt (HJ)

Or so I hope.

Got up the courage to weigh in this morning. Not good.

Really not good.

You know how I was unhappy to reach my heaviest ever?

It isn't anymore.

And you know how I was never going to be on this side of a certain round number ever again?

Well, let's just say that I'm one mouthful away from hitting the next round number up.

I need a plan. It probably involves exercise and better food choices.

So I had dessert at church tonight to celebrate.

I hope that wasn't the mouthful that will tip the scales the last remaining little bit.

Weight Loss is a health hazard (Rhubarb Whine)

I'm serious.

In an effort to remain thrifty and not spend money on clothes, I have kept the pants and shirts that are too big for me,  to wear around the house and make use of them. I've dropped 2 clothes sizes, so some of them are rathaer baggy.

Last night, in my elasticised bali pants, I caught my left toe in the hem of the right leg which trailed on the ground because the waistband kept slipping past my hips. This means my feet were tangled. I pitched forward head first into the laundry wall. I handed on my knees, and my husband, seeing my flight, lunged forward and grabbed me by the arm.

I now sport 2 very black and bruised knees, a bruised imprint of a hand on my inner left arm and a bump on my forehead right between the eyes.

I am *so* going shopping, thrifty can go and get knotted.

I wonder... (HJ)

I was doing well on the weightloss thing, then Christmas intervened and I lost the plot.

I had put a weightloss ticker on my blog, but haven't updated it. It still shows that I've lost 6.0 kilos.

I wonder what would happen if I updated it to show that I've put on a couple of extra kilos from where I started?

Things to ponder.

*sigh*

Inching Downwards (Rhubarb Whine)

It's been a whine while between updates, although I have begun to post several times with the best of intentions.

However.

It didn't happen.

Since the last update, I seem to have dropped yet another 5 kilograms. My sum total of loss is now 15 kilograms (ish) depending on whose scale you believe. I'll go with mine, it weighs lower than my GPs).

That puts me in the bracket of people who often look at themselves and say "I need to lose weight, I want to lose some weight", which is far better than the bracket I have left behind, which was "You need to lose some weight, I want YOU to lose some weight, your health is compromised".

I am happy with that.

I have reached my initial goal, which was the number issued for health reasons. My own number.

My next goal is only a few-ish kilos away, that's my pre-pregnancy weight.

Then I am aiming for the 'this is what I used to weigh' weight.
And a shopping trip.