Weigh In & Holiday Parties

I’m down another pound, yes! That brings me to a grand total of 6.4 pounds in 4 weeks, putting my current weight at 188. It’s slightly annoying since I weighed myself at home right before I started Weight Watchers, and it said 184, compared to the 194.4 that Weight Watchers had on their scale. However, I’m trying to go with it, and realize that in the end, those eight or ten pounds don’t really matter.

I’m also getting used to the new Weight Watchers plan, how sugar makes the points value of a food skyrocket. I’m definitely off the office candy bowl. There’s also been a few other times where there has been some great treat in the office, and I didn’t give a second thought to not having any. I also realized that I don’t actually need all the honey that comes in my Fage 2% with honey, which brings the points of the yogurt back down to the original 5 points. Progress!

I'm feeling pretty in control these last few weeks, which is a wonderful feeling indeed. I can gauge how confident I am in my weight loss by what I daydream about while walking to the subway. Is it showing up svelte to my company's holiday party next near, when (hopefully) they would have not seen my transformation because I finally got a new job? Is it running into my sixth grade crush/bully while he's drunkenly peeing in the street and I look great? Or is it what I'd do with 2, 4, or 6 million dollars? It's all in the daydreams, my friends.

How was your office holiday party? Open-bar-fancy-apps or daytime pre-ordered luncheon?

Weekly Weigh-In: Seesaw

I got my groove back, working hard and ending the week with a 3300-calorie deficit. (I.e. almost a pound's worth of calories.) 

This week’s weigh-in below. Since I’ve been doing more intensive Tuesday night workouts that I think might have been affecting the weigh-in, I got on a scale a day early.

	Start	6/8	8/19	9/30	10/29	12/31	1/28	2/11	2/18	2/25	3/4
Weight	200	191.2	182.6	181	181.4	177.2	174.6	174.2	178	177	175
Lbs. Fat		82.7	72.5	70.3	70.8	67.1	65.3	64.7	67.4	66.5	64.6
Lbs. Muscle		67.3	66.8	65.2	67.3	63.9	64.4	63.5	64.2	68.2	64.1

So we’re getting closer to where it’s supposed to be before the ridiculous 4-pounds-up-in-one-week gain, but still a couple pounds off by my calorie calculations. On another note, look how close the fat and muscle pounds are! The seesaw is about to turn the other way.

Honestly, I’m worried this is starting to mess with my head. Just based on these numbers, my weight has been overall quite stagnant for months. But it shouldn’t be. But it is. And I'm tired of being tired of it.

I’ve had one or two people tell me that they’ve noticed I look smaller, more compact, compared to a couple of months ago. I can feel it, too. My back and waist are smaller, and I think my thighs are actually smaller too. That one’s especially great, because they’re usually the last to go. I can see my jawline has gotten more defined. It's definitely time for some new measurements and progress photos, actually.

So it’s like my appearance matches my efforts and success, but the scale, even with it’s fat/muscle magic, isn’t. I liked the scale because it’s supposed to be a good way to measure shorter term progress, but right now it’s not doing its job. So I either need to really, really focus on the positive changes that have been happening to my body (because they really have and it’s great) or stop weighing in.

Tools are only tools when they’re useful (unless of course you’re talking about people who are tools), and this one’s not being useful. It’s time for some updated measurements, ASAP.

The other question is, should I put the scale away? 
Who else is sick of my whining besides me?

Weigh-In: Sometimes It's Just Annoying

Last week I was disappointed that the my weight was essentially the same despite a good week, so this morning, after another on-plan week, I was expecting to be close to my birthday goal of getting out of the 170s.

The weigh-in:

	Starting	6/8	8/19	9/30	10/29	11/19	12/31	1/14	1/21	1/28	2/4
Weight	200	191.2	182.6	181	181.4	177.6	177.2	175.8	174.8	174.6	175.8
Lbs. Fat		82.7	72.5	70.3	70.8	68.1	67.1	67.6	66.5	65.3	66.8
Lbs. Muscle		67.3	66.8	65.2	67.3	63.3	63.9	65	65.1	64.4	65.2

This

And this. 

What is this sorcery? This is one of those times when I think I just have to accept that, sometimes, the scale really just doesn't reflect the last week (or two) of hard work. Still annoyed, but have to trust that my body keeps track and it will catch up. I feel like I'm riding a bike at a really high gear - pedaling so fast and hard, but barely moving.

The stats for this week: 

Workouts: 

I went to the gym six times this week, and burned a total of 3650 calories. I did one session of strength training, so will try to do another tomorrow since that's one of my February goals

Workouts included two classes - my beloved Sunday Zumba, and a step class. Holy crap, step classes are hard. They don't explain any of the moves, they just start and newbs like me try not to fall off or be too awkward when we realized we've been facing the wrong way for the last twenty seconds. 

Calories: 

I had a couple of higher calorie days, especially on the harder workouts, but it averaged out well with my "flex" calories and I ended the week with a deficit of about 3200, or close to a pound. Not that you'd see it on the scale though. (Bitter? Me?)

We went to a friend's Super Bowl party on Sunday and I told John that it would be easier not to eat any of the snack foods than to just have one chip or one pretzel or one pizza. I'm so much more about the sweet, so it would just be picking and mindless eating if I ate it. And I succeeded! Our lovely host also made a huge tray of cut up veggies, and we brought some baby carrots and hummus as well. It was a fun party, and my pride was such that you'd have thought I'd just aced the LSATs. 

Upcoming challenges this week: Nothing too challenging coming up, thankfully. However, my birthday is in a couple of weeks, and we have a wedding the weekend after that.

I'm stuck between "This is one of two days a year, literally, that I will not worry about calories and enjoy some food" and "Why lessen the week's accomplishments? Will your birthday really be so much less special if you don't eat a ton of junk food?" We'll see, I guess - though whatever happens, I WILL track it. 

Onto the next week. Really hoping my efforts show on the scale next week. I feel like I could squeak out my goal if that happens. 

Birthdays - Junk-fest-free-for-all or a chance to take a special birthday edition SoulCycle class? 

Weekly Weigh-In - Drunk Scale

Here are the latest numbers, straight from my unforgiving and possibly drunk bathroom scale:

	6/8	8/19	9/30	10/29	11/6	11/12	11/19	12/3	12/10
Weight	191.2	182.6	181	181.4	179.6	179.6	177.6	181	179
Lbs. Fat	82.7	72.5	70.3	70.8	70.3	68.8	68.1	71.4	66.9
Lbs. Muscle	67.3	66.8	65.2	67.3	65	67.7	63.3	68.7	64

The scale has been fluctuating wildly last few weeks, but at least I'm back on the right track. Plus, the fat pounds are the lowest I've had - a good sign. One of my short-term goals, besides getting into the 160s by 2/16, is to have more muscle than fat. I'm getting close, and I think it will cause a little mental shift to have a more proper ratio.

There are too many events happening this week - our company's holiday party tonight, potluck meals with friends, our department potluck on Monday, and another little work party on Tuesday. Of course it's nice to be celebrating, but it's a lot of food-events for one week.

I'm going to try to do my best tonight, but not beat myself up if I don't do well. I went to the gym, had a hearty but lighter lunch, and will be having a "mini" dinner before head out there, so I don't have the mentality of "this is my dinner" when looking at the delicious but likely deep-fried food at the bar, because that often leads to overeating.

For the work potluck I'm going to make a vegetable based dish so there's something healthier I can focus on, and probably fudge because fudge is awesome. Yesterday I slipped on my "no food at work" rule and had a chocolate-covered Oreo that someone got as a holiday gift from a vendor. How is something so simple, so delicious?