The following post was also written in my journal on August 13, I am typing and posting a portion of it here.
Ugh! How did I gain weight?! It was only three quarters of a pound, but I want to see downward trends, not upward trends.
Showing posts with label history. Show all posts
Showing posts with label history. Show all posts
Wednesday, October 1, 2008
Tuesday, September 30, 2008
No weigh
I hate stepping on the scale to weigh myself. I think part of the reason I gained 13 or 14 pounds in the first four years of marriage was because we didn't have a working scale so I never, ever weighed myself during those years. Sure, my clothes were getting slightly tighter, but it was gradual, so I didn't really notice it.
When I started Weight Watchers in July, I weighed myself every morning. At first, I lost weight when I went in for my weekly weigh-ins, so I was happy to step on the scale. But, then I gained weight one week. It was only 1/2 a pound, and it happended to be the week after an out-of-town wedding where most meals for three days straight were eaten in a restaurant, but it was enough to frustrate me. It was also about that time when I started to notice and get frustrated with the fluctuations in my weight. Somehow, from one morning to the next, I would gain or lose up to three pounds. I know that's not possible, but I've never had anyone give me a satisfactory explanation for these weight fluctuations. I know I weigh slightly more right before my period starts, and I have noticed that I seem to "lose" weight shortly after my period ends.
I've gone back and forth for the past few days over whether I should document my weight in this blog. For now, I've decided not to post my weight on a daily basis, but I reserve the right to change my mind once I get within 10 pounds of my ultimate goal, but at the rate I'm going currently, that won't be for a while.
When I started Weight Watchers in July, I weighed myself every morning. At first, I lost weight when I went in for my weekly weigh-ins, so I was happy to step on the scale. But, then I gained weight one week. It was only 1/2 a pound, and it happended to be the week after an out-of-town wedding where most meals for three days straight were eaten in a restaurant, but it was enough to frustrate me. It was also about that time when I started to notice and get frustrated with the fluctuations in my weight. Somehow, from one morning to the next, I would gain or lose up to three pounds. I know that's not possible, but I've never had anyone give me a satisfactory explanation for these weight fluctuations. I know I weigh slightly more right before my period starts, and I have noticed that I seem to "lose" weight shortly after my period ends.
I've gone back and forth for the past few days over whether I should document my weight in this blog. For now, I've decided not to post my weight on a daily basis, but I reserve the right to change my mind once I get within 10 pounds of my ultimate goal, but at the rate I'm going currently, that won't be for a while.
Monday, September 29, 2008
My personal trainer
The most serious I've ever been about losing weight (before now) was in May of 2007. I visited my doctor for my annual exam, and I was appalled at the number on the scale when I got weighed. It had been 18 months since the birth of my second child, and I was about 14 pounds heavier than my pre-pregnancy weight. I set my mind toward losing those 14 pounds, at least.
For about two months, I worked out on my own at least 3 days a week. I tried to watch what I ate, but truth be told, I didn't change my eating habits or limit my caloric intake at all. I'm one of those people who fall into the trap of "I worked out today, I can eat whatever I want." So, I didn't lose any significant weight, but I was encouraged by some signs that I was toning up.
In June of 2007, I read an article about a new company of personal trainers who made house calls. The rates seemed reasonable enough, so I called the number in the paper. When I hung up the phone, I had an appointment with a personal trainer for the following week. After doing the intial assessment, we agreed that I needed to work out at least 4 days a week. Two days a week the personal trainer would come to my house at 6:00 am, and the other two days a week I'd be on my own. The trainer put together a little routine for me to follow on his off days, and I was pretty diligent about doing it.
The best thing about having the personal trainer, for me, was that he really taught me how to work out. He taught me how to push myself, and he made me realize that I was strong and could get stronger. He showed me new exercises, ones I never would have tried on my own. He started me off with 2 pound weights, but he had me doing most exercises with 10 pound weights in no time.
Unfortunately, I did not see the results I was looking for. I was expecting the weight to "melt" off me given all the lean muscle mass I was building. In three months of intense working out, I lost about nine pounds and several inches. My trainer also expressed dismay at my lack of weight loss. He suggested that perhaps my metabolism was "off" and urged me to get my thyroid checked. When my blood work came back "normal," I decided to let the trainer go because I could not justify the $125 a week for what I considered sub-par results.
It was around this time that I discovered Jari Love and her Get Ripped 1000 workout. This is the DVD that alternates between segments of cardio bursts and strength training. I never would have considered this video prior to working out with the trainer, I never would have had the confidence in my ability to do the moves. But after working with the trainer, I knew I could do it.
Unfortunately, at the end of October 2007, our family was struck with a sudden and major tragedy, and my desire and will to work out ended abruptly. It took me until July 2008 to get motivated again to lose weight. I did work out sporadically during the winter months, but I was nowhere near as serious as I had been.
When I went back to my doctor for my annual exam for 2008, I weighed exactly what I weighed the year before. Ironically, the doctor actually commended me for not gaining any weight over the course of the year. I then had to admit to him that I had actually lost and then gained about 9 pounds.
Today, I'm actually a pound or two less than I was when I was working out with the personal trainer. I'm not satisfied, I will keep going. I can't think about where I might be if I had kept going. I just know that I have a goal, and I have motivation. I have a series of incentives, and I think I've given myself a realistic time frame to lose the weight I want to lose. With Weight Watchers' help, I've changed my eating habits. I'm not a perfect dieter by any means, I still cheat, and I "overeat" my points on occasion. But I think, if I keep plugging away, I can get to where I want to be.
For about two months, I worked out on my own at least 3 days a week. I tried to watch what I ate, but truth be told, I didn't change my eating habits or limit my caloric intake at all. I'm one of those people who fall into the trap of "I worked out today, I can eat whatever I want." So, I didn't lose any significant weight, but I was encouraged by some signs that I was toning up.
In June of 2007, I read an article about a new company of personal trainers who made house calls. The rates seemed reasonable enough, so I called the number in the paper. When I hung up the phone, I had an appointment with a personal trainer for the following week. After doing the intial assessment, we agreed that I needed to work out at least 4 days a week. Two days a week the personal trainer would come to my house at 6:00 am, and the other two days a week I'd be on my own. The trainer put together a little routine for me to follow on his off days, and I was pretty diligent about doing it.
The best thing about having the personal trainer, for me, was that he really taught me how to work out. He taught me how to push myself, and he made me realize that I was strong and could get stronger. He showed me new exercises, ones I never would have tried on my own. He started me off with 2 pound weights, but he had me doing most exercises with 10 pound weights in no time.
Unfortunately, I did not see the results I was looking for. I was expecting the weight to "melt" off me given all the lean muscle mass I was building. In three months of intense working out, I lost about nine pounds and several inches. My trainer also expressed dismay at my lack of weight loss. He suggested that perhaps my metabolism was "off" and urged me to get my thyroid checked. When my blood work came back "normal," I decided to let the trainer go because I could not justify the $125 a week for what I considered sub-par results.
It was around this time that I discovered Jari Love and her Get Ripped 1000 workout. This is the DVD that alternates between segments of cardio bursts and strength training. I never would have considered this video prior to working out with the trainer, I never would have had the confidence in my ability to do the moves. But after working with the trainer, I knew I could do it.
Unfortunately, at the end of October 2007, our family was struck with a sudden and major tragedy, and my desire and will to work out ended abruptly. It took me until July 2008 to get motivated again to lose weight. I did work out sporadically during the winter months, but I was nowhere near as serious as I had been.
When I went back to my doctor for my annual exam for 2008, I weighed exactly what I weighed the year before. Ironically, the doctor actually commended me for not gaining any weight over the course of the year. I then had to admit to him that I had actually lost and then gained about 9 pounds.
Today, I'm actually a pound or two less than I was when I was working out with the personal trainer. I'm not satisfied, I will keep going. I can't think about where I might be if I had kept going. I just know that I have a goal, and I have motivation. I have a series of incentives, and I think I've given myself a realistic time frame to lose the weight I want to lose. With Weight Watchers' help, I've changed my eating habits. I'm not a perfect dieter by any means, I still cheat, and I "overeat" my points on occasion. But I think, if I keep plugging away, I can get to where I want to be.
Saturday, September 27, 2008
How I got here
I was 17 years old when I first started an exercise routine geared to help me lose weight. I was a senior in high school, and I wanted to look good in my bikini on the beach in the Bahamas for Spring Break. I didn't have a lot of weight to lose, I just wanted to slim down a little. I always had "thick thighs," and I was hoping that I could make them thinner.
During college, I worked out at UMich's CCRB using mainly the stair master and attending a variety of aerobics classes. In four years of college, I'd say I gained somewhere between 5 and 10 pounds.
When I went on to do my post-graduate work, I started running 3 miles a day, and occasionally I'd mix in some aerobics videos. I was able to maintain my weight during those three years. My first business suits were all size 4.
The day I got married, one year after graduating from law school, I weighed about seven pounds more than I did when I graduated from high school nine years earlier.
Somehow, in the last 9 years since I got married, I have gained and lost weight such that currently I am 17 pounds heavier than I was on my wedding day. Four years into my marriage, before getting pregnant with my first child, I had gained 13 pounds. I have weighed as much as 178 lbs, which was on the day I gave birth to my first child. Before getting pregnant with my second child, I was within 10 or 11 pounds of my pre-pregnancy weight.
Since July, I have been able to lose most of my remaining "pregnancy" weight; Today, I am a mere four pounds away from what I weighed when I got pregnant with my first child. That may look good on paper, but the unfortunate thing is that my body parts simply are not as firm and taught as they once may have been. Whereas before I always thought my "problem areas" were my inner thighs and saddle bags, today the most pronounced problem areas are my stomach pouch and "thick waist." This is not to say that I still don't find my inner thighs to be a problem, that area has simply fallen in my list of priorities.
My goal is to lose 17 pounds by next June. In honor of our 10 year anniversary, I'm hoping to weigh what I weighed the day I got married. Depending on how that goes, maybe I'll push myself to lose an additional 7 pounds so I can say that I weigh what I weighed in high school.
During college, I worked out at UMich's CCRB using mainly the stair master and attending a variety of aerobics classes. In four years of college, I'd say I gained somewhere between 5 and 10 pounds.
When I went on to do my post-graduate work, I started running 3 miles a day, and occasionally I'd mix in some aerobics videos. I was able to maintain my weight during those three years. My first business suits were all size 4.
The day I got married, one year after graduating from law school, I weighed about seven pounds more than I did when I graduated from high school nine years earlier.
Somehow, in the last 9 years since I got married, I have gained and lost weight such that currently I am 17 pounds heavier than I was on my wedding day. Four years into my marriage, before getting pregnant with my first child, I had gained 13 pounds. I have weighed as much as 178 lbs, which was on the day I gave birth to my first child. Before getting pregnant with my second child, I was within 10 or 11 pounds of my pre-pregnancy weight.
Since July, I have been able to lose most of my remaining "pregnancy" weight; Today, I am a mere four pounds away from what I weighed when I got pregnant with my first child. That may look good on paper, but the unfortunate thing is that my body parts simply are not as firm and taught as they once may have been. Whereas before I always thought my "problem areas" were my inner thighs and saddle bags, today the most pronounced problem areas are my stomach pouch and "thick waist." This is not to say that I still don't find my inner thighs to be a problem, that area has simply fallen in my list of priorities.
My goal is to lose 17 pounds by next June. In honor of our 10 year anniversary, I'm hoping to weigh what I weighed the day I got married. Depending on how that goes, maybe I'll push myself to lose an additional 7 pounds so I can say that I weigh what I weighed in high school.
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