Wheels are just turning wildly in my head today.
I was in my aqua class this morning & I couldn’t stop thinking about this. I was thinking about how I would love to find a person or two that could use someone to help pull them up NOW & start walking w/ them, maybe introduce them to water walking & simple water exercises…it’s so good for your joints & so do-able at any size, even for the extremely obese. I want to start talking w/ them, encouraging them… helping them see that better health & weight-loss doesn’t have to be overwhelming. I want them to see, through my example, that this IS possible & can even be simple… all about making small, simple changes… & PATIENCE!
I was thinking about maybe putting a small ad in our suburban newspaper or even calling them to tell my story. I don’t know if that sounds obnoxious, I mean, what makes ME so special?? I’m not even at goal yet… in alot of peoples’ eyes, I’d be far from it (43 lbs yet)... but to me, my goal has never been closer. And at this point, for them to see me continue to lose weight as I get closer to my goal might make more of an impact than for me to just already be there & telling them about it.
Hmmmmmmm… thinking, thinking.
I think that if they were REALLY large… like maybe even over 300 lbs (although I’m thinking REALLY large as being 400, 500, 600+ lbs), that I would ask them to make a doctor’s appointment where we both could go talk to the doctor about being cleared for exercise…rather than just have them sign something for me that says I wouldn’t be responsible if anything happened to them. Okay… it’s not like I’m going to expect them to overexert themselves… just simple stuff like walking, etc.
Just thinking…
Thursday, October 19, 2006
Wednesday, October 18, 2006
43 THINGS - I'M THINKING OF A SPACE...
I'm thinking of a space...
Something BEYOND Weight Watchers
I’m thinking…
I WANT TO DO MORE…
(I wrote THIS paragraph almost 3 years ago & this still exists in my head)
I want to be able to personally touch people as individuals. I’m trying to work out the whats, wheres, hows, whys…but I know that I’m going to do SOMETHING. I’ve been told so many times that I was going to do something great w/ my life… I always thought it was something creative… something in the Interior Design world, or maybe something else, but something creative, Artsy. I realize now that this “SOMETHING” is much more personal. I believe in myself now… I believe I can help change lives, THAT is the “something” I’m going to set off to do.
I know all there is to know about losing weight… well, for myself, anyways. As of today, I’ve lost 82 lbs out of a total of 125 that will get me to my goal of 150 lbs.
This has been almost 4 years in the making.
One of my goals:
once I reach my WW goal weight, is to become a WW leader.
- Because I want to help others…to encourage, inspire, teach… offer hope.
- Because I think it will be HUGE for me for accountability.
- Because I think that really GOOD leaders are few & far between. I’ve been to meetings where the leader has NO personality & they don’t engage their members. How do you expect to inspire & motivate those that really REALLY need it if you have no way to really draw them in? I think that I have the right personality for this.
I know that WW will train me to be a leader… supply me w/ the proper tools to do the job… & I know that even w/out that, just my experience alone would bring alot to the table. BUT…I think that it would be really beneficial to learn all that I can about nutrition, fitness & obesity. I know there are many aspects of “weight issues” that I’ve not experienced that others will have. I would like to bring a higher level of credibility to the position.
Anyways… there’s more I’d like to do w/ it… probably more than what WW would allow… so who knows, maybe someday I’ll be on my own…as a nutritionist…a personal trainer…a life coach. I’d like to work w/ EXTREMELY Obese clients, diabetics, the deaf (will be learning sign language) & children.
So…
I’m thinking of a SPACE…
...a great space that we can just hang out & talk… one-on-one or a good sized group. Sofas, chairs, ottomans, etc… a great, comfortable space… group therapy… something more than what you can get from a typical 30 minute WW meeting.
...a space that has a professional kitchen that would allow me to cook w/ my clients… individually or in groups… teaching them different ways to cook awesome, healthy meals. I can imagine hanging out w/ a group of kids… teaching them about making FUN, healthy choices. (Maybe a “Breakfast Club”, my sister’s idea, where a small group of kids come before school & help put together a great, healthy breakfast to get their day going.)
...a space that I can pull a few treadmills out of a closet & “take a walk” w/ a client that would rather not do it in public. Wouldn’t that be awesome? Maybe some hand weights & a medicine ball or two… some resistance bands… a few yoga mats.
So… HERE is where I’m going to work it out. Figure out what I need to do. How far I need to go w/ “actual” education (nutrition, personal training, etc)… what kind of certificates (or degrees?) I might need to do this kind of work.
Wondering if WW would go for something like this… or if this is too far beyond them.
Will figure that out.
Julie
Something BEYOND Weight Watchers
I’m thinking…
I WANT TO DO MORE…
(I wrote THIS paragraph almost 3 years ago & this still exists in my head)
I want to be able to personally touch people as individuals. I’m trying to work out the whats, wheres, hows, whys…but I know that I’m going to do SOMETHING. I’ve been told so many times that I was going to do something great w/ my life… I always thought it was something creative… something in the Interior Design world, or maybe something else, but something creative, Artsy. I realize now that this “SOMETHING” is much more personal. I believe in myself now… I believe I can help change lives, THAT is the “something” I’m going to set off to do.
I know all there is to know about losing weight… well, for myself, anyways. As of today, I’ve lost 82 lbs out of a total of 125 that will get me to my goal of 150 lbs.
This has been almost 4 years in the making.
One of my goals:
once I reach my WW goal weight, is to become a WW leader.
- Because I want to help others…to encourage, inspire, teach… offer hope.
- Because I think it will be HUGE for me for accountability.
- Because I think that really GOOD leaders are few & far between. I’ve been to meetings where the leader has NO personality & they don’t engage their members. How do you expect to inspire & motivate those that really REALLY need it if you have no way to really draw them in? I think that I have the right personality for this.
I know that WW will train me to be a leader… supply me w/ the proper tools to do the job… & I know that even w/out that, just my experience alone would bring alot to the table. BUT…I think that it would be really beneficial to learn all that I can about nutrition, fitness & obesity. I know there are many aspects of “weight issues” that I’ve not experienced that others will have. I would like to bring a higher level of credibility to the position.
Anyways… there’s more I’d like to do w/ it… probably more than what WW would allow… so who knows, maybe someday I’ll be on my own…as a nutritionist…a personal trainer…a life coach. I’d like to work w/ EXTREMELY Obese clients, diabetics, the deaf (will be learning sign language) & children.
So…
I’m thinking of a SPACE…
...a great space that we can just hang out & talk… one-on-one or a good sized group. Sofas, chairs, ottomans, etc… a great, comfortable space… group therapy… something more than what you can get from a typical 30 minute WW meeting.
...a space that has a professional kitchen that would allow me to cook w/ my clients… individually or in groups… teaching them different ways to cook awesome, healthy meals. I can imagine hanging out w/ a group of kids… teaching them about making FUN, healthy choices. (Maybe a “Breakfast Club”, my sister’s idea, where a small group of kids come before school & help put together a great, healthy breakfast to get their day going.)
...a space that I can pull a few treadmills out of a closet & “take a walk” w/ a client that would rather not do it in public. Wouldn’t that be awesome? Maybe some hand weights & a medicine ball or two… some resistance bands… a few yoga mats.
So… HERE is where I’m going to work it out. Figure out what I need to do. How far I need to go w/ “actual” education (nutrition, personal training, etc)… what kind of certificates (or degrees?) I might need to do this kind of work.
Wondering if WW would go for something like this… or if this is too far beyond them.
Will figure that out.
Julie
Sunday, September 17, 2006
43 THINGS - KEEP LOSING WEIGHT TILL I REACH GOAL WEIGHT
When I started this journey in January 2003, I had 125 lbs to lose. At times I can’t help but think that if I had kept it together all along I would be @ goal aready. But then I realize that until THIS journey, I never believed I could stick w/ it for more than a few months. (as my previous “normal” M.O.)
I was reading some of my archived journal entries & RAMBLINGS here last night & came across something I wrote on my 2nd year WW Anniversary after realizing that even though I had reached my “all time low weight” in YEARS (185.6, almost 90 lbs lost w/ just 35.6 lbs to go), that w/ my end of the year stumble, I had netted only a 7 lb loss in my 2nd year w/ WW:
Yeah… sometimes it feels like I’m losing (the battle), especially when I look @ a number like THAT… feeling like I completely wasted a full year of my life… but then I sit back & realize that I’ve not given up… I’ve not thrown in the towel & said “I can’t do this!” I KNOW that this is my life & what I’ve learned this year is that it’s not as easy as I thought it was! :o) But I didn’t start this because I thought it would be easy. I didn’t begin this journey w/ a finish line in mind… I KNOW that this isn’t a race. I know that this isn’t all about always doing the right thing… that it’s more about stumbling & learning along the way. THAT’S what this year has been about for me… stumbling & learning along the way… being proud of myself not because I succeeded… but because I’m still here. I’m not giving up… that’s never crossed my mind.
I’ve hung in there for over 3 1/2 years now…186 weeks & I’m still here. Still stumbling & learning along the way… but I’m not about to give up. I’m figuring it out & I’m really proud of myself.
So, we continue on…
I was reading some of my archived journal entries & RAMBLINGS here last night & came across something I wrote on my 2nd year WW Anniversary after realizing that even though I had reached my “all time low weight” in YEARS (185.6, almost 90 lbs lost w/ just 35.6 lbs to go), that w/ my end of the year stumble, I had netted only a 7 lb loss in my 2nd year w/ WW:
Yeah… sometimes it feels like I’m losing (the battle), especially when I look @ a number like THAT… feeling like I completely wasted a full year of my life… but then I sit back & realize that I’ve not given up… I’ve not thrown in the towel & said “I can’t do this!” I KNOW that this is my life & what I’ve learned this year is that it’s not as easy as I thought it was! :o) But I didn’t start this because I thought it would be easy. I didn’t begin this journey w/ a finish line in mind… I KNOW that this isn’t a race. I know that this isn’t all about always doing the right thing… that it’s more about stumbling & learning along the way. THAT’S what this year has been about for me… stumbling & learning along the way… being proud of myself not because I succeeded… but because I’m still here. I’m not giving up… that’s never crossed my mind.
I’ve hung in there for over 3 1/2 years now…186 weeks & I’m still here. Still stumbling & learning along the way… but I’m not about to give up. I’m figuring it out & I’m really proud of myself.
So, we continue on…
Saturday, September 16, 2006
43 THINGS - GOAL #1
Keep losing weight till I reach goal weight
Another week of THJ, being completely sugar-free & getting in some APs (16)... I find myself another 1.8 lbs lighter! That puts me back under 200 (again), at 198.2 lbs to be exact…plan on staying there this time!! :o) That’s 8.8 lbs in 3 weeks… undoing the 8.2 lbs I gained over the 6 previous weeks! :o) Looking @ my weight chart of this long journey of mine (on my site), I haven’t been under 198 since March ‘05. Feels good, that’s for sure!
Nice to be in control instead of all over the place. I plan on staying that way… being sugar-free is definitely helping.
Now to kick the activity up a few notches. :o)
Julie
Another week of THJ, being completely sugar-free & getting in some APs (16)... I find myself another 1.8 lbs lighter! That puts me back under 200 (again), at 198.2 lbs to be exact…plan on staying there this time!! :o) That’s 8.8 lbs in 3 weeks… undoing the 8.2 lbs I gained over the 6 previous weeks! :o) Looking @ my weight chart of this long journey of mine (on my site), I haven’t been under 198 since March ‘05. Feels good, that’s for sure!
Nice to be in control instead of all over the place. I plan on staying that way… being sugar-free is definitely helping.
Now to kick the activity up a few notches. :o)
Julie
Saturday, September 9, 2006
RAMBLING...WHY SUGAR FREE??
I can see this is somewhat of a repeat from a few journal entries ago, this was part of my introduction to the group of people w/ the same goal. I think I go into a little more detail than I did a few journal entries ago.
Well… first of all, you have to realize that I’ve been doing WW for over 3 1/2 years now. I love it… it’s so simple. Eat whatever if you can fit it into your points, right? But at some point, about a year or so into it, I realized that I wanted to start looking at things more nutritionally… like a healthier/thinner person. So, I’ve been trying to cut out processed foods. All of the white stuff… white flour, white rice, white pasta, etc. It’s been tough to cut out things like snack bars & such, so many low point snacks are still highly processed. Sugar is a highly processed substance, too. I have found that I am at my worst when I am eating sweets. I have absolutely no control (of course I didn’t realize this until I was trying to control it!!). I CRAVE sweets & other bad carbs. They call to me. I’ve been doing “the dance” (up/down/up/up/down) w/ my weight for the past 2 years, mainly because of my struggle w/ sugar. PMS times are the worst… that whole week or two before my period I’d be completely out of control & it ticked me off that I couldn’t control myself. Talking to my doctor, she said that it’s not just in my head… that alot of women crave sugar during PMS… it’s a chemical thing. Felt like an excuse to me, but I went w/ it!! LOL! :o) At some point my doctor recommended a book to me… Potatoes Not Prozac ...to help deal w/ depression issues, but what I found is that it deals alot w/ SUGAR ADDICTION & how it affects mood & cravings & such. It’s an amazing book… I’m still needing to read it all, but it helped me make a decision early on…. time to break away from my sugar habit!
It’s hard to do… sugar has a major grip on most of us. Ever eat something sweet & 20 mintues later you’re wanting to eat more, or just eat “something” in general? Ever take a nibble of something sweet & then try to ignore it but it calls your name from across the room?? So you go back for another nibble, then another, then another? That’s sugar. (want to learn more? Sugar Addiction
Anyways… I find that after several days off of sugar, ALL cravings are gone. I could go all day & not think about food. It’s like night & day. I do sooooooooo well OP (on program / WW) when I’m sugar-free. I’ve been trying to be sugar-free since probably early spring this year. My mood was better, my “willpower” was fantastic, my weight losses were consistent, which has been a major problem for me over the past few years. Then I think “what’s wrong w/ having that piece of birthday cake?” Nothing, right? Just this once. Nope…it just knocks me over. Seriously. I figure I can catch it quickly & get it back under control but it does something to me… TOTALLY changes my mood, cravings are INTENSE! I’ve had 2 bouts w/ sugar since I started this… the first one lasted 6 weeks (after about 8 great weeks!), then I was great for a month (& lost all of the weight I gained over those 6 weeks), till another piece of birthday cake said it was okay… then I was gone for a month… till I got so down, I was weepy & moody & I HAD to weigh-in because the month was up, so I just did it, faced the 8 lb gain & used it to right myself. That was this past week… my first good week after a really really bad month….... NIGHT & DAY, completely. Each time I slip w/ the sugar it makes me more aware of how it affects me. So, I can use these bad periods as great learning experiences…that’s the good thing about it.
Speaking of “bad periods”, LOL, those God-awful sugar cravings I have when I’m PMSing?? When I’m sugar-free, they don’t exist… smooth sailing. Crazy, huh?
So… I just need to figure out how to make it work for me. The doctor who wrote “Potatoes Not Prozac” has a great website called Radiant Recovery ...worth checking out. Not just about the issue of how sugar plays into weight issues, but also substance addiction.
Well… first of all, you have to realize that I’ve been doing WW for over 3 1/2 years now. I love it… it’s so simple. Eat whatever if you can fit it into your points, right? But at some point, about a year or so into it, I realized that I wanted to start looking at things more nutritionally… like a healthier/thinner person. So, I’ve been trying to cut out processed foods. All of the white stuff… white flour, white rice, white pasta, etc. It’s been tough to cut out things like snack bars & such, so many low point snacks are still highly processed. Sugar is a highly processed substance, too. I have found that I am at my worst when I am eating sweets. I have absolutely no control (of course I didn’t realize this until I was trying to control it!!). I CRAVE sweets & other bad carbs. They call to me. I’ve been doing “the dance” (up/down/up/up/down) w/ my weight for the past 2 years, mainly because of my struggle w/ sugar. PMS times are the worst… that whole week or two before my period I’d be completely out of control & it ticked me off that I couldn’t control myself. Talking to my doctor, she said that it’s not just in my head… that alot of women crave sugar during PMS… it’s a chemical thing. Felt like an excuse to me, but I went w/ it!! LOL! :o) At some point my doctor recommended a book to me… Potatoes Not Prozac ...to help deal w/ depression issues, but what I found is that it deals alot w/ SUGAR ADDICTION & how it affects mood & cravings & such. It’s an amazing book… I’m still needing to read it all, but it helped me make a decision early on…. time to break away from my sugar habit!
It’s hard to do… sugar has a major grip on most of us. Ever eat something sweet & 20 mintues later you’re wanting to eat more, or just eat “something” in general? Ever take a nibble of something sweet & then try to ignore it but it calls your name from across the room?? So you go back for another nibble, then another, then another? That’s sugar. (want to learn more? Sugar Addiction
Anyways… I find that after several days off of sugar, ALL cravings are gone. I could go all day & not think about food. It’s like night & day. I do sooooooooo well OP (on program / WW) when I’m sugar-free. I’ve been trying to be sugar-free since probably early spring this year. My mood was better, my “willpower” was fantastic, my weight losses were consistent, which has been a major problem for me over the past few years. Then I think “what’s wrong w/ having that piece of birthday cake?” Nothing, right? Just this once. Nope…it just knocks me over. Seriously. I figure I can catch it quickly & get it back under control but it does something to me… TOTALLY changes my mood, cravings are INTENSE! I’ve had 2 bouts w/ sugar since I started this… the first one lasted 6 weeks (after about 8 great weeks!), then I was great for a month (& lost all of the weight I gained over those 6 weeks), till another piece of birthday cake said it was okay… then I was gone for a month… till I got so down, I was weepy & moody & I HAD to weigh-in because the month was up, so I just did it, faced the 8 lb gain & used it to right myself. That was this past week… my first good week after a really really bad month….... NIGHT & DAY, completely. Each time I slip w/ the sugar it makes me more aware of how it affects me. So, I can use these bad periods as great learning experiences…that’s the good thing about it.
Speaking of “bad periods”, LOL, those God-awful sugar cravings I have when I’m PMSing?? When I’m sugar-free, they don’t exist… smooth sailing. Crazy, huh?
So… I just need to figure out how to make it work for me. The doctor who wrote “Potatoes Not Prozac” has a great website called Radiant Recovery ...worth checking out. Not just about the issue of how sugar plays into weight issues, but also substance addiction.
43 THINGS - GOAL #4...
Get to my goal weight & become a WW leader...finally
I posted this to my buddies on GOAD over 2 1/2 years ago on my 1st WW Anniversary, January 23rd, 2004 , after losing around 65 lbs & feeling really confident about my future…
…because of YOU & my experience on GoaD, I know that I’m about to set the rest of my life in a completely different direction than I had ever planned. I AM going to become a WW Leader once I hit goal (which, before this year, I had never even THOUGHT about doing)... BUT, I want to do more. I want to be able to personally touch people as individuals. I don’t know how yet, I’m trying to work that out, but I know that I’m going to do SOMETHING. I’ve been told so many times that I was going to do something great w/ my life… I always thought it was something creative… something in the Interior Design world, or maybe something else, but something creative, Artsy. I realize now that this “SOMETHING” is much more personal. I believe in myself now… I believe I can help change lives, THAT is the “something” I’m going to set off to do.
Like I said… OVER 2 1/2 years ago I knew I wanted to become a WW Leader & help change people’s lives… but as I’ve been struggling w/ moving forward the past 2 years (see my first few Keep losing weight till I reach my goal weight posts on 43 Things to see more about that), I’ve lost sight of that desire I once had. Things were so easy for me early on that I was able to focus on other people’s struggles & I loved being able to do that. But the struggle of NOT losing weight has completely diverted my attention away from helping others.
I’ve been struggling the past few months w/ “what am I going to do w/ the rest of my life” questions since my kids are back in school & I’m left w/ too much time on my hands. WHEN I’m working, the work that I do is freelance & extremely specialized (I design & draw, by hand, custom cabinetry & furniture) & pays really well. The designers I’ve been working w/ for the past 10 years aren’t very busy right now & I’m not really excited about looking for other designers to work w/. I’m feeling extremely unskilled as far as any other “career” type jobs go & am feeling really spoiled as I don’t want to bother w/ any unskilled/minimum wage paying job.
I’m too creative for my own good & too ADD to decide on any one creative outlet (not that any would pay well). If I wanted to dig deeper into the design world, like maybe become an architect (which I would love), I would have to get all of the basic college courses out of the way first, as my design degree is an Associates Degree, which was 100% Interior Design… so an actual high-end architect job just seems so out of reach, like I’d be starting from scratch.
Sooooooooooooooo… as I’m continuing to struggle w/ figuring out how to get myself moving forward w/ weight-loss again & trying to figure out what to do w/ my life, I started remembering my early desire to become a WW Leader & realized that THIS was the answer I’ve been looking for. Not only does it make me want to REALLY really focus on what I need to do to get this weight off once & for all so I can become a Lifetime WW member & be qualified to work for WW… but it answers my burning “what to do w/ my life” question. I know I’m not going to get rich being a leader… but that’s what my DH is for, LOL… I just need to be doing something fulfilling & also feel like I’m contributing to “our” finances, as little as it may be. I’ve always said that I would be happy to work for minimum wage doing something I love…like in a garden shop… unskilled, probably, but good for your soul… nurturing something… plants, people, etc. Being a leader is also very flexible, which works great for my family.
Okay… I’m talking myself into circles, what a surprise. :o) I’m just feeling really good about this. So now let’s see what we can do to get there…
More to come…
I posted this to my buddies on GOAD over 2 1/2 years ago on my 1st WW Anniversary, January 23rd, 2004 , after losing around 65 lbs & feeling really confident about my future…
…because of YOU & my experience on GoaD, I know that I’m about to set the rest of my life in a completely different direction than I had ever planned. I AM going to become a WW Leader once I hit goal (which, before this year, I had never even THOUGHT about doing)... BUT, I want to do more. I want to be able to personally touch people as individuals. I don’t know how yet, I’m trying to work that out, but I know that I’m going to do SOMETHING. I’ve been told so many times that I was going to do something great w/ my life… I always thought it was something creative… something in the Interior Design world, or maybe something else, but something creative, Artsy. I realize now that this “SOMETHING” is much more personal. I believe in myself now… I believe I can help change lives, THAT is the “something” I’m going to set off to do.
Like I said… OVER 2 1/2 years ago I knew I wanted to become a WW Leader & help change people’s lives… but as I’ve been struggling w/ moving forward the past 2 years (see my first few Keep losing weight till I reach my goal weight posts on 43 Things to see more about that), I’ve lost sight of that desire I once had. Things were so easy for me early on that I was able to focus on other people’s struggles & I loved being able to do that. But the struggle of NOT losing weight has completely diverted my attention away from helping others.
I’ve been struggling the past few months w/ “what am I going to do w/ the rest of my life” questions since my kids are back in school & I’m left w/ too much time on my hands. WHEN I’m working, the work that I do is freelance & extremely specialized (I design & draw, by hand, custom cabinetry & furniture) & pays really well. The designers I’ve been working w/ for the past 10 years aren’t very busy right now & I’m not really excited about looking for other designers to work w/. I’m feeling extremely unskilled as far as any other “career” type jobs go & am feeling really spoiled as I don’t want to bother w/ any unskilled/minimum wage paying job.
I’m too creative for my own good & too ADD to decide on any one creative outlet (not that any would pay well). If I wanted to dig deeper into the design world, like maybe become an architect (which I would love), I would have to get all of the basic college courses out of the way first, as my design degree is an Associates Degree, which was 100% Interior Design… so an actual high-end architect job just seems so out of reach, like I’d be starting from scratch.
Sooooooooooooooo… as I’m continuing to struggle w/ figuring out how to get myself moving forward w/ weight-loss again & trying to figure out what to do w/ my life, I started remembering my early desire to become a WW Leader & realized that THIS was the answer I’ve been looking for. Not only does it make me want to REALLY really focus on what I need to do to get this weight off once & for all so I can become a Lifetime WW member & be qualified to work for WW… but it answers my burning “what to do w/ my life” question. I know I’m not going to get rich being a leader… but that’s what my DH is for, LOL… I just need to be doing something fulfilling & also feel like I’m contributing to “our” finances, as little as it may be. I’ve always said that I would be happy to work for minimum wage doing something I love…like in a garden shop… unskilled, probably, but good for your soul… nurturing something… plants, people, etc. Being a leader is also very flexible, which works great for my family.
Okay… I’m talking myself into circles, what a surprise. :o) I’m just feeling really good about this. So now let’s see what we can do to get there…
More to come…
Saturday, September 2, 2006
July 29th thru August 26th:
2 birthdays, lots of cake, more sugar, lots of cravings, no journaling, skipped meetings, zero activity, etc... perfect recipe for disaster, don't you think?? What a surprise, gained 8 lbs.
1 week later:
100% THJ (Totally Honest Journaling), no sugar, all of the basics (water, fruits & veggies, dairy, oil, etc)... I lost 4.6 lbs!! Yeah! Back down to 202.4 lbs.
I swear, every time I go sugar-free I see the best weight loss... even the very first time I tried it for a week in 2005.
Yeah Me!! :o)
Now on to Week 2 of THJ!
1 week later:
100% THJ (Totally Honest Journaling), no sugar, all of the basics (water, fruits & veggies, dairy, oil, etc)... I lost 4.6 lbs!! Yeah! Back down to 202.4 lbs.
I swear, every time I go sugar-free I see the best weight loss... even the very first time I tried it for a week in 2005.
Yeah Me!! :o)
Now on to Week 2 of THJ!
Saturday, May 13, 2006
WEEKLY WEIGH-INS
My weigh-in on Saturday got me to my most current birthday goal... to be back in ONDERLAND! Down 1.2 lbs to 199.6 lbs!! My original birthday goal, to get to goal by my 40th, was obviously not going to happen w/ the continual struggle I've been doing up to a few months ago... I'm just thrilled to have made this progress & to be back on track after such a long struggle.
I originally reached ONDERLAND on February 28, 2004... 1st time since 1990 that I had been under 200... needless to say, it was a very emotional time for me. Actually... here... I'll let you read about it if you want... this is what I wrote on my weight-chart... the link will take you to my journal entry.
OMG! I DID IT!!!
ONDERLAND!!!
OH HAPPY DAY!!! :o)
I had alot to say about today (what a surprise!)
Read about it in my JOURNAL entry
.....I worked my way back out of Onderland by April 2005, had a month back under 200 in November & have struggled to get back to it ever since. This time I'm staying. :o)
Thanks for your support guys!!!
Julie
I originally reached ONDERLAND on February 28, 2004... 1st time since 1990 that I had been under 200... needless to say, it was a very emotional time for me. Actually... here... I'll let you read about it if you want... this is what I wrote on my weight-chart... the link will take you to my journal entry.
OMG! I DID IT!!!
ONDERLAND!!!
OH HAPPY DAY!!! :o)
I had alot to say about today (what a surprise!)
Read about it in my JOURNAL entry
.....I worked my way back out of Onderland by April 2005, had a month back under 200 in November & have struggled to get back to it ever since. This time I'm staying. :o)
Thanks for your support guys!!!
Julie
Friday, May 5, 2006
SUGAR-FREE...
I had another fabulous week! THJing is definitely helping, no doubt...but I think that going SUGAR-FREE, though, has been key in why it's going so well. Cravings for sweets & other carbs are gone!! Yeah, I think about them some... but there is no serious "draw" to them... they don't call to me like they usually do. I can usually take care of it w/ some fruit. If you have any doubts about this, I have to tell you that I've been dealing w/ some MAJOR PMS sugar-cravings for the last few years... OUT OF CONTROL & it usually kills my week... then I'm spending the rest of the month undoing the damage. This has been a HUGE reason why I've had so much trouble the past year & 1/2 or so. No, REALLY! It's like clockwork. I even talked to my doctor about it, thinking that it was all in my head & that I was using PMS as an excuse to blow it once a month... NOPE! It's a true chemical/hormonal thing (thing, LOL, so technical!!)... something to do w/ the build-up of iron in your system just before your period (sorry guys). My doctor thought that going "sugar-free" might help ease the "out of control-ness" of PMS & sure enough, I've just experienced my THIRD run @ a fairly calm PMS week!
I've noticed that the desire to munch is gone... not just PMSing, but any time. I can talk myself into waiting till the urge passes, instead of just going for it, as is my norm over the past year or two.
My friends think I'm nuts when I talk about this... but I'm just blown away w/ the difference in how I feel! Even I think about how rough it might be to be sugar-free forever... & I know that I'm going to have things like birthday cake & a piece of Thanksgiving pumpkin pie & stuff like that... but I also know what it feels like to come down from that sugar, so I think it'll be few & far between... so I'll more than likely be very happy w/ a small piece of whatever.
If you're interested in finding out more about sugar addiction, check this out or just Sugar Addiction.
A highly recommended book (by my doctor & many many online) written by Kathleen DesMaisons Ph.D., is Potatoes Not Prozac: A Natural Seven-Step Dietary Plan to Stabilize the Level of Sugar in Your Blood, Control Your Cravings and Lose Weight, and Recognize How Foods Affect the Way You Feel. I have it... just haven't read it. Now that I'm working on the sugar-free thing, I'm going to read it.
Oh yeah... what I was getting at w/ the PMS thing & all, LOL!!....cool thing about this weigh-in... I'm SOOOOOOO close to ONDERLAND again & my recent/more realistic goal was to be back under 200 by my 40th birthday, which is May 16th... just over a week away. Well... my worry was that next week would be my PMS week, which means just before "TOM" (time of month - sorry guys!), my weight would normally be up 3-5 lbs on average "just before" (it's true, guys... but nope, not a reason to whine about weight-gain & TOM, but it IS reality... TEMPORARY REALITY... but it's something, the extra weight, you can count on each month.) & I figured that it might be tough to actually be down .9 lbs or more @ my next WI since i was expecting to be dealing w/ extra weight, right? NOPE... "TOM", LOL, came along late today, after WI, which means that I was already holding that extra "pre-weight" & still lost 2.4 lbs!!! Yeah me!!! :o) So... next week's WI should be FABULOUS! PLUS...I went through another PMS week w/out even realizing it. Cool!! :o)
LOL... sorry guys... really... I needed to go into all "that" to relate how things are changing w/ me... & how well things are going!
Thanks for listening!
Julie
I've noticed that the desire to munch is gone... not just PMSing, but any time. I can talk myself into waiting till the urge passes, instead of just going for it, as is my norm over the past year or two.
My friends think I'm nuts when I talk about this... but I'm just blown away w/ the difference in how I feel! Even I think about how rough it might be to be sugar-free forever... & I know that I'm going to have things like birthday cake & a piece of Thanksgiving pumpkin pie & stuff like that... but I also know what it feels like to come down from that sugar, so I think it'll be few & far between... so I'll more than likely be very happy w/ a small piece of whatever.
If you're interested in finding out more about sugar addiction, check this out or just Sugar Addiction.
A highly recommended book (by my doctor & many many online) written by Kathleen DesMaisons Ph.D., is Potatoes Not Prozac: A Natural Seven-Step Dietary Plan to Stabilize the Level of Sugar in Your Blood, Control Your Cravings and Lose Weight, and Recognize How Foods Affect the Way You Feel. I have it... just haven't read it. Now that I'm working on the sugar-free thing, I'm going to read it.
Oh yeah... what I was getting at w/ the PMS thing & all, LOL!!....cool thing about this weigh-in... I'm SOOOOOOO close to ONDERLAND again & my recent/more realistic goal was to be back under 200 by my 40th birthday, which is May 16th... just over a week away. Well... my worry was that next week would be my PMS week, which means just before "TOM" (time of month - sorry guys!), my weight would normally be up 3-5 lbs on average "just before" (it's true, guys... but nope, not a reason to whine about weight-gain & TOM, but it IS reality... TEMPORARY REALITY... but it's something, the extra weight, you can count on each month.) & I figured that it might be tough to actually be down .9 lbs or more @ my next WI since i was expecting to be dealing w/ extra weight, right? NOPE... "TOM", LOL, came along late today, after WI, which means that I was already holding that extra "pre-weight" & still lost 2.4 lbs!!! Yeah me!!! :o) So... next week's WI should be FABULOUS! PLUS...I went through another PMS week w/out even realizing it. Cool!! :o)
LOL... sorry guys... really... I needed to go into all "that" to relate how things are changing w/ me... & how well things are going!
Thanks for listening!
Julie
Saturday, April 29, 2006
I'M STILL HERE!
Hey guys... yeah, I'm still here... still hanging in there! Life has been completely nuts the last several months... I hate to say it, but keeping the website up to date has been at the bottom of my list. Someone eMailed me the other day (thank you) & said she was just checking up on me, noticed that I hadn't updated my site in a while & just wanted to make sure that I was okay & to not give up. That was really sweet (& really appreciated!) & made me realize that it was way past time that I updated my site!!
I've been hanging out on a different guys' board these days, GoaD , which is a breakout group from the original WW GoaD board. A small group of awesome people who really enjoy being there in eachother's weigh loss journey, rather than lots of drama & unnecessary postings, which is what the WW board was being filled up w/. I just don't have the time anymore to weed through all of the unnecessary to get to the reason I posted there... SUPPORT! I loved being there for others, I miss them sometimes, too, but I just can't these days.
OP-wise, I'm doing great these days. I've had 6+ weeks of consistency, which is something I haven't been able to do in over a year & 1/2, so it feels like I'm back to my old OP self.
I had a HUGE gain over the holidays... FOURTEEN pounds & have worked most of it off now... which is progress, right?? :o) Can't look back & say "if I hadn't gained I would be...." ... I just have to look @ it as progress & be proud of myself, right??
Anyways... I have bookmarked a bunch of the big posts that I wrote on the guys' board & will post them here (by date) soon, so you can feel like I never went anywhere!! :o)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
We also just got a new puppy... DIEGO, a Cocker Spaniel... which is consuming tons of my time (& my sleep!!!). Here is a picture of him @ 8 weeks w/ Brayden (7 1/2)... mid April
Adorable, huh?? (puppy's pretty cute, too!!)
I've been hanging out on a different guys' board these days, GoaD , which is a breakout group from the original WW GoaD board. A small group of awesome people who really enjoy being there in eachother's weigh loss journey, rather than lots of drama & unnecessary postings, which is what the WW board was being filled up w/. I just don't have the time anymore to weed through all of the unnecessary to get to the reason I posted there... SUPPORT! I loved being there for others, I miss them sometimes, too, but I just can't these days.
OP-wise, I'm doing great these days. I've had 6+ weeks of consistency, which is something I haven't been able to do in over a year & 1/2, so it feels like I'm back to my old OP self.
I had a HUGE gain over the holidays... FOURTEEN pounds & have worked most of it off now... which is progress, right?? :o) Can't look back & say "if I hadn't gained I would be...." ... I just have to look @ it as progress & be proud of myself, right??
Anyways... I have bookmarked a bunch of the big posts that I wrote on the guys' board & will post them here (by date) soon, so you can feel like I never went anywhere!! :o)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
We also just got a new puppy... DIEGO, a Cocker Spaniel... which is consuming tons of my time (& my sleep!!!). Here is a picture of him @ 8 weeks w/ Brayden (7 1/2)... mid April
Adorable, huh?? (puppy's pretty cute, too!!)
Monday, January 30, 2006
HAPPY MONDAY MORNING...HAPPY MONDAY MORNING...
This was what my Mom used to sing to me when she was trying to drag me out of bed in the morning for school. :o) (I'm trying to think of what the tune is...it was either that one or Good Morning to youGood Morning to you... to the tune of Happy Birthday) Once I was in high school, it became wet wash cloths thrown @ me! LOL!! At a certain point I appreciated it & could catch it w/ my eyes closed....putting it on my face to wake me up... always worked.
Good morning guys! Everyone ready to start their week on a positive note? (no pun intended!) I certainly am! I know, I know, I seem a little bi-polar, don't I?? (up, down, up, down........I'm not, by the way.) I think about where I was last Monday on my WW anniversary & where I am now...... just goes to show how well things can go when you just do what you know is right for you... how easy it is to turn things around when you're willing to just do the work. So...knowing this, why do we let things go south every so often?? I remember coming to this realization early in my 1st year of WW (this go-round) & when I felt myself slipping ever so slightly I could pull myself up so quickly, knowing that I wanted to continue the positive movement, the positive feelings, etc. It worked so well... I don't get why I'm not as quick to turn things around these days... I know how it works... JUST DO IT, huh??
Okay... enough about that. :o) What positive things are YOU going to do for yourself today? What are you going to do to make yourself proud? (hope you all had a good weekend!) My goal for the day (the week, actually) is to JOURNAL... that's what works for me & I know I have to do it.
After having a record warm month of January, we got a few inches of snow last night. It'll be cool today... 30 for the high, but looks like we'll be back above freezing again for the next few days. Crazy. (NOT complaining!)
I have a dental appointment this afternoon to get fitted for a crown & then will go to Aqua tonight...... w/ some laundry & cleaning in between. Just like weight loss, housework is a continuous job, isn't it?
Anyways... everyone have a great day!
Julie
Good morning guys! Everyone ready to start their week on a positive note? (no pun intended!) I certainly am! I know, I know, I seem a little bi-polar, don't I?? (up, down, up, down........I'm not, by the way.) I think about where I was last Monday on my WW anniversary & where I am now...... just goes to show how well things can go when you just do what you know is right for you... how easy it is to turn things around when you're willing to just do the work. So...knowing this, why do we let things go south every so often?? I remember coming to this realization early in my 1st year of WW (this go-round) & when I felt myself slipping ever so slightly I could pull myself up so quickly, knowing that I wanted to continue the positive movement, the positive feelings, etc. It worked so well... I don't get why I'm not as quick to turn things around these days... I know how it works... JUST DO IT, huh??
Okay... enough about that. :o) What positive things are YOU going to do for yourself today? What are you going to do to make yourself proud? (hope you all had a good weekend!) My goal for the day (the week, actually) is to JOURNAL... that's what works for me & I know I have to do it.
After having a record warm month of January, we got a few inches of snow last night. It'll be cool today... 30 for the high, but looks like we'll be back above freezing again for the next few days. Crazy. (NOT complaining!)
I have a dental appointment this afternoon to get fitted for a crown & then will go to Aqua tonight...... w/ some laundry & cleaning in between. Just like weight loss, housework is a continuous job, isn't it?
Anyways... everyone have a great day!
Julie
Monday, January 23, 2006
3 YEAR WW ANNIVERSARY - January 23rd - aka "Kicking & Screaming"
2 o'clock in the morning...
UGH.
3 years.
A year ago I never thought I'd be sitting here a full year later not only having NOT reached goal (still), but having taken many large steps backwards rather than any positive movement forward.
I'm really frustrated right now. Can you tell?
Geez...I feel like I've lost it.
Just give me a minute to get this frustration out .......................ARG!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Darn it...
Okay... deep breath.......
This was supposed to be a THOUGHTFUL / HOPEFUL post........ it's my anniversary afterall. That's something to be proud of, right?? I'm still here... I'm still fighting... I've never walked away in these 3 years... but crap....it seems like I'm stuggling more than I'm not these days.
I'm not too sure what it's going to take to get me moving forward again. I feel like I'm falling backwards faster & faster at the moment.
What happened to my Birthday goal? What happened to the Healthy Habits Contest?? Seems like when I challenge myself I take even larger steps backwards. What in the world?? Sounds like something to bring to my shrink! :o)
Sorry... just a little frustrated. This anniversary is just making me look back on a year of what feels like HUGE failures at the moment.
I need to make a plan. I need to get selfish & start focusing on me again. I need to lose the destructive habits I've formed that are getting me nowhere.... staying up too late... playing SUDOKU every chance I get (new addiction)... watching THREE soaps (recording them when I'm not home & watching them LATE)... late night snacking... & the list goes on & on. I think alot of this can be taken care of by getting to bed earlier... having a regular bedtime, getting consistent amounts of sleep... refocusing & trying to structure my time. I've never been a planner... never given myself any structure... it's time to do that, don't you think???
I don't know. Maybe this is the year I just work on getting it together. Not specifically weight, but everything. Maybe that's asking too much... maybe it's not specific enough. I gotta think it through.
What do I want? Where should I be as a responsible 40 year old adult??? Where do I want to be this time next year?
I feel like I know everything I need to know & it's just about doing it. I have a hard time asking for help since I'm so darn knowledgeable :o) ........ but I'll listen... gimme a clue, please! :o)
Thanks guys. I'm so glad you're all here. Hope you made it all the way through my babbling... I DO know how to ramble on, don't I?? :o)
Julie
Here are some stats...
Dec. 22, 2002 - 275 lbs (start journaling/counting points)
Jan. 23, 2003 - Join WW - 265 lbs.
Jan. 23, 2004 - 1 year WW anniv. - 204 lbs.
2/28/04 - Onderland
9/4/04 -185.6 lbs - almost 90 lbs lost
struggle, struggle, struggle...
Jan. 23, 2005 - 2 year WW anniv. - 195 lbs
struggle, struggle, struggle...
5/05 - back in Twoterville
struggle, struggle, struggle...
RESTART...9/10/05 -201 lbs.
struggle, struggle, struggle...
12/31/05 - 214 lbs.
???
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Posted later the same afternoon after some sleep & much thought...
Thank you guys, for your words of encouragement today...it REALLY means so much to have you all in my corner... you all know exactly what I'm dealing w/ & knowing there's a place to just lay it all out there is kinda theraputic, don't you think??
After getting the kids off to school, eating a banana & climbing back into bed for a little while, I got up & read your responses & just tried to get my day off on a better foot. Ate a good lunch (tuna & veggies) & have just been thinking about what it means & what it takes to be thoughtful... conscious...full of purpose for a change.
I'm considering switching to CORE, again... tried 3 times before, lost my head w/in a few weeks each time...so I don't really know WHY I'm even thinkiing about it, but I like the fact that CORE puts your focus on NUTRITION & whole foods. I guess I'm nervous about giving up on the journaling, though, I know THAT's why this has worked for me & why when I'm NOT jouraling it DOESN'T work for me. I need to find a balance, somehow. For now I'm going to focus on CORE foods, CORE recipes, because I know they're so much healthier, but I'll continue to do flex...journal, count points. We'll see. Maybe @ some point I'll drop the point counting & then eventuallly I'll move from fully journaling to just tracking the daily basics. Don't know... we'll see. :o)
Anyways... it's been an emotional day, but I realize that there's no need to panic. It's just time to really sit down & figure out what I'm really wanting here... figure out how to get my focus back to where it needs to be, etc.
I've decided that I'm going to be going to bed by 10pm NO MATTER WHAT from now on. (DH would like this, too!) If there was something I needed to get done I can get up early & take care of it. AND I'll ONLY get 8 hours of sleep. :o) Something that I tend to do if I go to bed early is continue to sleep in as late as I possibly can... sometimes getting 10+ hours of sleep. The whole purpose is forming a consistent sleep pattern AND getting up early enough to have a thoughtful & productive morning each & every day...giving me some time to plan things out for my day.
Anyways... other than my anniversary thread, the board has been dead today, so I just wanted to say HI...hope you're all having a great day.
Thanks again! It's nice to have a soft place to land sometimes. :o)
Julie
UGH.
3 years.
A year ago I never thought I'd be sitting here a full year later not only having NOT reached goal (still), but having taken many large steps backwards rather than any positive movement forward.
I'm really frustrated right now. Can you tell?
Geez...I feel like I've lost it.
Just give me a minute to get this frustration out .......................ARG!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Darn it...
Okay... deep breath.......
This was supposed to be a THOUGHTFUL / HOPEFUL post........ it's my anniversary afterall. That's something to be proud of, right?? I'm still here... I'm still fighting... I've never walked away in these 3 years... but crap....it seems like I'm stuggling more than I'm not these days.
I'm not too sure what it's going to take to get me moving forward again. I feel like I'm falling backwards faster & faster at the moment.
What happened to my Birthday goal? What happened to the Healthy Habits Contest?? Seems like when I challenge myself I take even larger steps backwards. What in the world?? Sounds like something to bring to my shrink! :o)
Sorry... just a little frustrated. This anniversary is just making me look back on a year of what feels like HUGE failures at the moment.
I need to make a plan. I need to get selfish & start focusing on me again. I need to lose the destructive habits I've formed that are getting me nowhere.... staying up too late... playing SUDOKU every chance I get (new addiction)... watching THREE soaps (recording them when I'm not home & watching them LATE)... late night snacking... & the list goes on & on. I think alot of this can be taken care of by getting to bed earlier... having a regular bedtime, getting consistent amounts of sleep... refocusing & trying to structure my time. I've never been a planner... never given myself any structure... it's time to do that, don't you think???
I don't know. Maybe this is the year I just work on getting it together. Not specifically weight, but everything. Maybe that's asking too much... maybe it's not specific enough. I gotta think it through.
What do I want? Where should I be as a responsible 40 year old adult??? Where do I want to be this time next year?
I feel like I know everything I need to know & it's just about doing it. I have a hard time asking for help since I'm so darn knowledgeable :o) ........ but I'll listen... gimme a clue, please! :o)
Thanks guys. I'm so glad you're all here. Hope you made it all the way through my babbling... I DO know how to ramble on, don't I?? :o)
Julie
Here are some stats...
Dec. 22, 2002 - 275 lbs (start journaling/counting points)
Jan. 23, 2003 - Join WW - 265 lbs.
Jan. 23, 2004 - 1 year WW anniv. - 204 lbs.
2/28/04 - Onderland
9/4/04 -185.6 lbs - almost 90 lbs lost
struggle, struggle, struggle...
Jan. 23, 2005 - 2 year WW anniv. - 195 lbs
struggle, struggle, struggle...
5/05 - back in Twoterville
struggle, struggle, struggle...
RESTART...9/10/05 -201 lbs.
struggle, struggle, struggle...
12/31/05 - 214 lbs.
???
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Posted later the same afternoon after some sleep & much thought...
Thank you guys, for your words of encouragement today...it REALLY means so much to have you all in my corner... you all know exactly what I'm dealing w/ & knowing there's a place to just lay it all out there is kinda theraputic, don't you think??
After getting the kids off to school, eating a banana & climbing back into bed for a little while, I got up & read your responses & just tried to get my day off on a better foot. Ate a good lunch (tuna & veggies) & have just been thinking about what it means & what it takes to be thoughtful... conscious...full of purpose for a change.
I'm considering switching to CORE, again... tried 3 times before, lost my head w/in a few weeks each time...so I don't really know WHY I'm even thinkiing about it, but I like the fact that CORE puts your focus on NUTRITION & whole foods. I guess I'm nervous about giving up on the journaling, though, I know THAT's why this has worked for me & why when I'm NOT jouraling it DOESN'T work for me. I need to find a balance, somehow. For now I'm going to focus on CORE foods, CORE recipes, because I know they're so much healthier, but I'll continue to do flex...journal, count points. We'll see. Maybe @ some point I'll drop the point counting & then eventuallly I'll move from fully journaling to just tracking the daily basics. Don't know... we'll see. :o)
Anyways... it's been an emotional day, but I realize that there's no need to panic. It's just time to really sit down & figure out what I'm really wanting here... figure out how to get my focus back to where it needs to be, etc.
I've decided that I'm going to be going to bed by 10pm NO MATTER WHAT from now on. (DH would like this, too!) If there was something I needed to get done I can get up early & take care of it. AND I'll ONLY get 8 hours of sleep. :o) Something that I tend to do if I go to bed early is continue to sleep in as late as I possibly can... sometimes getting 10+ hours of sleep. The whole purpose is forming a consistent sleep pattern AND getting up early enough to have a thoughtful & productive morning each & every day...giving me some time to plan things out for my day.
Anyways... other than my anniversary thread, the board has been dead today, so I just wanted to say HI...hope you're all having a great day.
Thanks again! It's nice to have a soft place to land sometimes. :o)
Julie
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