Beth's WDW Countdown Weight Loss Journal, Goal: Lose 50 lbs by Feb 2016 with My Fitness Pal & Fitbit

[Kriii]

Beth, I am by no means an expert in weight loss but I do see some real wisdom and increased understanding about how you need to tackle this challenge personally reflected in today's post. The fact that you are analyzing your thought process, sticking to overall healthy eating and exercising despite not having immediate large weight losses is a really good sign that you will achieve long term success. Even during weeks that there isn't a huge change in the scale numbers, you are still becoming more used to the healthy habits that will optimize your health. You've mentioned your DH, family and friends. All of those people will be so glad to have a healthier Beth to cherish for as many years as possible. It's all very nice to have a slimmer body but IMHO that slimmer body needs to be the result of good MENTAL and PHYSICAL health which you are CLEARLY developing. You aren't a rookie to this weight loss thing and your thinking clearly shows a mature and thoughtful approach. You haven't used the slower than desired loss as an excuse to quit. Don't forget that the 15/50 pounds you have lost is a real achievement! As far as the insatiable hunger last week, the "ahem" other reasons would account for that and that is totally normal for women. You already know that but I'm affirming that you aren't weak for eating extra - just normal! I hope that you have a really wonderful week.

 

[DisPup75]

Week 6 Weigh In Results

Lost 0.8 lbs this week
Down to 242.6

Hmm...not much but completely unexpected since I'm a daily-weigher and I've been up all week except one day. My takeaway...I don't know, my thoughts are really all over the place. First I'm realizing that it's going to take as long as it's going to take. I think that's a good realization for me. I was very upset that I wasn't losing during this past week, in fact I was showing a gain and while I wasn't perfect, I wasn't eating 3500+ calories to gain a pound or more. I was meeting my exercise goals and doing okay with my calories, although I did have a cheat day and I was eating the higher end of my calories. The biggest reason I was upset though (besides showing a gain) was because I was starting to think the only way I could lose weight was to eat closer to the minimum calories everyday and I ABSOLUTELY DID NOT want to feel like I had to do that. I want to lose weight by eating not starving or depriving myself. This past week I have been eating more than the week before and that took care of the insatiable hunger I was feeling.

I'm interested in seeing what this next week holds for me. I'm going to keep doing what I'm doing, trying to get 10k steps and eating my calories. I don't know if it was because of the heat, but I know I was retaining water and um, other stuff. I'm not drinking enough for my size and how much I'm walking, but especially not enough for the heat. I have to make a better plan/effort to drink more water. And the other thing I'm planning to do differently is not to weigh daily, at least for this week, maybe longer, we'll see. It affects my moods too much, so the scale is now tucked away in the closet until next Saturday. So the plan is to continue doing what I'm doing, eating my calories, walking and increase my water, and only weigh weekly. I know that I really need to ease up on my expectations to lose X per week and realize that if I keep on doing what I'm doing, I WILL lose the weight. It might take longer than I'd like, but I will lose it.

15.2/50.8 pounds lost

184 days til Disney!!

I seem to have lost the power of multi-quote this morning. First, congratulations on another loss! Your totals are so wonderful and you are making steady progress to get where you want to be. I think it is good that there are weeks in which we stop and smell the roses and eat a little bit more than planned. I think knowing how to do it while losing will make maintenance so much easier. And you are really starting to learn to keep your body happy!

It sounds like tucking away the scale for the week is a good idea. I'm SO proud of your progress!!!

 

[DisPup75]

Beth, I am by no means an expert in weight loss but I do see some real wisdom and increased understanding about how you need to tackle this challenge personally reflected in today's post. The fact that you are analyzing your thought process, sticking to overall healthy eating and exercising despite not having immediate large weight losses is a really good sign that you will achieve long term success. Even during weeks that there isn't a huge change in the scale numbers, you are still becoming more used to the healthy habits that will optimize your health. You've mentioned your DH, family and friends. All of those people will be so glad to have a healthier Beth to cherish for as many years as possible. It's all very nice to have a slimmer body but IMHO that slimmer body needs to be the result of good MENTAL and PHYSICAL health which you are CLEARLY developing. You aren't a rookie to this weight loss thing and your thinking clearly shows a mature and thoughtful approach. You haven't used the slower than desired loss as an excuse to quit. Don't forget that the 15/50 pounds you have lost is a real achievement! As far as the insatiable hunger last week, the "ahem" other reasons would account for that and that is totally normal for women. You already know that but I'm affirming that you aren't weak for eating extra - just normal! I hope that you have a really wonderful week.

Totally agree! Beth rocks!!!

 

[Dentam]

Just wanted to chime in again and say that you're doing great an have a great outlook and thought process about this! I also notice that my appetite increases a LOT around that time of the month and I also gain weight from retaining water because of it. I weigh daily although it used to bum me out and make me say the heck with it. Now I just see it as natural fluctuations and it's a learning experience to see how it all works. I agree that if it's getting you too discouraged though that you should try weighing just once a week and see how that goes.

Over 15 pounds down already - GREAT JOB!!

 

[bethk78]

Beth, I am by no means an expert in weight loss but I do see some real wisdom and increased understanding about how you need to tackle this challenge personally reflected in today's post. The fact that you are analyzing your thought process, sticking to overall healthy eating and exercising despite not having immediate large weight losses is a really good sign that you will achieve long term success. Even during weeks that there isn't a huge change in the scale numbers, you are still becoming more used to the healthy habits that will optimize your health. You've mentioned your DH, family and friends. All of those people will be so glad to have a healthier Beth to cherish for as many years as possible. It's all very nice to have a slimmer body but IMHO that slimmer body needs to be the result of good MENTAL and PHYSICAL health which you are CLEARLY developing. You aren't a rookie to this weight loss thing and your thinking clearly shows a mature and thoughtful approach. You haven't used the slower than desired loss as an excuse to quit. Don't forget that the 15/50 pounds you have lost is a real achievement! As far as the insatiable hunger last week, the "ahem" other reasons would account for that and that is totally normal for women. You already know that but I'm affirming that you aren't weak for eating extra - just normal! I hope that you have a really wonderful week.

I seem to have lost the power of multi-quote this morning. First, congratulations on another loss! Your totals are so wonderful and you are making steady progress to get where you want to be. I think it is good that there are weeks in which we stop and smell the roses and eat a little bit more than planned. I think knowing how to do it while losing will make maintenance so much easier. And you are really starting to learn to keep your body happy!

It sounds like tucking away the scale for the week is a good idea. I'm SO proud of your progress!!!

Totally agree! Beth rocks!!!

Just wanted to chime in again and say that you're doing great an have a great outlook and thought process about this! I also notice that my appetite increases a LOT around that time of the month and I also gain weight from retaining water because of it. I weigh daily although it used to bum me out and make me say the heck with it. Now I just see it as natural fluctuations and it's a learning experience to see how it all works. I agree that if it's getting you too discouraged though that you should try weighing just once a week and see how that goes.

Over 15 pounds down already - GREAT JOB!!

You guys are the best! Thank you for the continued advice, support and encouragement. Truly a great group of people on this board.

 

[Dentam]

Just wanted to check in to see how you are doing - hope all is well!

 

[bethk78]

Just wanted to check in to see how you are doing - hope all is well!

Thanks Dentam. It's been a nutty week but the good news is I've been doing pretty good on my eating and exercise all week. Normally a series of stressful days like this would make me chuck it all (the diet & exercise plan) out the window but this time that didn't even occur to me. That makes me really happy. But I haven't been posting which I feel guilty about but I have been keeping diligent notes so I will post the past 7 days. And then weigh-in day is tomorrow. I haven't been weighing daily at all this week so I really have no idea what it's going to read. Fingers crossed.

 

[bethk78]

Day 41 of 224, Sat 8/1

Logged all my food in MFP. I noticed that overall I’m eating slower, savoring my food, so I’m happy about that. Ate the majority of my exercise calories, ending the day at 1611. Water: 8.

Took 10,373 steps today. Walked the usual 60 minutes outside around the neighborhood, 20 minutes around the house plus a store run.

So after I did my official weigh-in I put away the scale. Not planning on doing any of the daily weigh-ins that I’ve been doing the past six weeks since I realized the ups and downs were affecting my moods too much. We’ll see how it goes…

*

Day 42 of 224, Sun 8/2

Logged all my food in MFP. Ate all my exercise calories plus 31 more for a total of 1731. I should have balanced my calories better today. I ate 2 bigger meals so not a lot leftover for the evening when I was feeling a bit snacky. But I love how my calories reset each day. Gets me through the evenings sometimes. Water: 8.

Took 10,095 steps today. VERY last minute walk. I really need to be better about that. I get most of my steps in the evening. I would really like to have more throughout the day. I need to figure out a plan. It’s a challenge for me since I work from home. Getting steps at a job outside the house, running errands, etc., was easier for sure but I like working from home so I just need to figure it all out.

So an 80 minute walk outside around the neighborhood plus a few more steps around the house to reach my goal. That’s 26 days in a row of walking over 10k steps. There used to be a time, I guess about 3 years ago now that DH and I could/would barely do 20 minutes. Now we can do 80 easily and faster too. I love those non-scale victories!!

Oh yeah and I wanted to weigh today as I have been weighing daily for the past 6 weeks but I resisted the urge. Good thing I tucked the scale away in the closet otherwise I’m pretty sure I would have.

*

Day 43 of 224, Mon 8/3

Logged all my food in MFP. Ate about 2/3s of my exercise calories, ending the day at 1575. I’m currently addicted to oven-fried potatoes, yum, and fry sauce, yum again, but dang there’s a lot of calories in fry sauce but still I like it and consider a treat/splurge and carefully measure and count it. Water: 8.

Took 10,124 steps today. 80 minute walk around the neighborhood, another late walk, same route as yesterday. I really hope that once summer’s over we can get back to our morning walks, I really liked it when most of my steps were done by 10-11 am.

I wanted to weigh in again today! I guess I may be slightly addicted, but still because it’s a whole 5 feet away in the closet I resisted the urge again. Weird though how much I wanted to do it. Later though, in the afternoon, I realized that I was happier that I didn’t. I didn’t know if I was up or down, so it didn’t give me a high or low. Not weighing daily reminds me that it’s a process and it’s not going to happen overnight. So I think it’s a good change that I might keep doing.

*

Day 44 of 224, Tues 8/4

Logged all my food in MFP. Didn’t eat any of my exercise calories, actually just shy of my regular calorie allotment, eating 1219 calories today. Ate 3 ham sandwiches today! Soooo good. Just really hit the spot. Got some ham on-sale at Albertson’s that I really like. I do a grain bread with mayo, lots of mustard, ham and packed with spun lettuce mix (I love spun lettuce, it’s so crispy and delicious). Also had a few different kinds of raw veggies and lemonade. Yum, everything just really hit the spot today. Water: 6.

Stressful day. Sometimes stress makes me want to eat everything in sight and other times it knots up my stomach and I don’t eat as much. Today was the latter. I actually prefer stress eating because the knot hurts. But it’s just one of those weeks. Should pass by Sunday/Monday, I just gotta push through it.

Took 9,777 steps today. My first thought was booo!! hiss!! that’s not 10,000 steps. But I want to be good decisions without holding myself to any sort of perfection and over 9,000 is really good for me especially since I work from home and if I didn’t do any outdoor or indoor walking I’d barely hit 1,000 steps each day. So it took me a little bit to come around attitude-wise. I felt guilty at first that it wasn’t 10k but it’s just another reminder that it’s not all or nothing. I find I get that lesson a lot. So a 60 minute walk outside, nice and cool thank goodness!! And then 20 minutes inside.

I’m still noticing that I’m feeling much more relaxed, less consumed now that I’m not weighing daily. I think it’s a good change.

Oh and my FitBit graphs are looking kind of sad. All my walking is late in the evening, not much movement at all during the day, too much sitting. I still need to come up with a plan. Ideally I’d like to get about 3,500 steps before my evening walk so I’ll have to make more of an effort to get up from my desk throughout the day and move around more than just a few feet. I’m a work in progress, figuring it all out.

*

Day 45 of 224, Wed 8/5

Logged all my food in MFP. Another stressful, knot-in-stomach day. Got up late, went to bed early, didn’t eat much. It’ll pass, I just gotta hang in there. Ate none of my exercise calories and didn’t even eat all my regular calories, ended the day at 1141. Too low. Water: 7.

Took 10,494 steps today. 70 minute walk outside around the neighborhood, 10 minute walk inside, plus normal around-the-house stuff to reach my step goal.

*

Day 46 of 224, Thurs 8/6

Logged all my food in MFP. Ate about half of my exercise calories ending the day at 1464. I’m all out of ham and now I’m sad. Gotta wait for it to go on sale again because I’m cheap. But if it doesn’t go back on sale soon I’m gonna suck it up and splurge on it because I really enjoyed all the ham sandwiches I ate this week. Very filling, satisfying and decent on calories. Water: 6.

Took 9,115 steps today. Lowest day in a while but still decent. 60 minute walk outside plus 15 minute walk inside. Last two days evenings were nice and cool, which makes it so much easier to walk. Today was muggy and I definitely didn’t have the same energy as the day before. Other than that it doesn’t look like I moved much at all.

Ordered a size smaller shorts off eBay. I don’t think I’ve ever ordered clothes off eBay before but it was $13.49 including shipping for a pair new with tags. They came today and I really like them. They make my old bigger, saggier shorts look extra sad. And they’re not tight, a bit loose around the waist so it makes me wonder how long until I’ll be down yet another size. Love it.

Officially I have 3 pairs of shorts and 1 capris that cannot be worn outside without a belt. Yay! They are a size too big but now they are falling off. I should probably just chuck them, they’re all getting pretty worn anyhow. I have bunch of jeans too that I need to go through too. I know there are definitely some bigger ones in there that I probably can’t/won’t wear anymore. Pretty cool.

*

Day 47 of 224, Fri 8/7

Logged all my food in MFP. Ate about 3/4 of my exercise calories ending the day at 1535. I’ve been on a major sandwich kick this past week: ham, PB & honey, egg salad, tuna salad. They really fill me up, satisfy me and are decent on calories. Water: 9.

Took 10,504 steps today. 2 store runs put me over 3,000, plus 60 minute walk outside and then 5 minutes of walking inside more than pushed me over my goal. Very pokey, low-energy on our walk outside but so was DH so it all worked out.

I tried on about 10-12 shirts today while shopping, size 2X, and every single one of them fit which was a pleasant surprise. Last time I went shopping I was definitely a 3X although it was a while ago. Nice to see the change because I really don’t feel all that different on top but I guess I am.

Two more days and then back to our normal routine and hopefully these stressful days will be behind us. I love my simple little life with DH. I don’t like the drama and change in routine this past week has been. I guess on the bright side it makes one appreciate more what they have.

 

[Dentam]

So sorry to hear that the week has been so stressful for you! It sounds like you have handled it very well and you didn't fall off the wagon so great job!! I'm the same way with stress - usually it makes me lose my appetite. During my first term in college instead of gaining the Freshman 15 I lost it and then some due to stress! No fun at all. I'm glad this next week should be better for you.

One of the best rewards for all the hard work is seeing your clothes get too big. HOORAY!!

Keep up the great work!

 

[DisPup75]

I'm so glad you've reappeared! I'm glad the stress will be lifting soon. I also woke to keep a simple life.

You've been doing a great job keeping on plan! Kudos to you! And to the too bing clothes!!

 

[bethk78]

Week 7 Weigh-In Results

Lost 1.6 lbs this week
Down to 241 even

Yay!! I'm very happy with that number. I would love to continue to lose 1 to 1 1/2 pounds per week, somewhere in that range.

It was a stressful week for me, probably the most stressful week I've had all year. But there is a positive - I didn't turn to food!! Normally I would have but I didn't realize until it was almost over that it never even occurred to me quit calorie counting or walking.

I kept to my goal of not weighing daily and surprisingly, I like it. My mood wasn't affected by what I was seeing on the scale each day because it was in the closet. Instead, I just focused on my calories and walking. I also think not weighing daily helped me reaffirm that this is a process, I can't expect to see daily changes/results. So I'm going to continue to weigh weekly for now.

My plan for the coming week is to do exactly what I did this past week, stay within my calories and do my walking every day. I didn't quite hit 10,000 steps two days this past week so hopefully I can get all 7 days this coming week. Also, I've started tracking my water and am trying to be better about drinking it, but it still needs work. I'd like to drink somewhere between 8-12 cups every day. The other thing I want to work on is getting more steps throughout the day before my evening walking. I'd like to have about 3,500 by the time I go for our nightly walk. Since I work from home I think that's going to be challenging for me but I can definitely improve it/work toward that goal.

16.8/50.8 pounds lost

177 days til Disney!!

 

[Kriii]

Keep up the fantastic work! So glad that you handled the stress without food! Hope the stress abates soon.

 

[Dentam]

Great job again this week - a third of the way to your goal already!

 

[DisPup75]

Week 7 Weigh-In Results

Lost 1.6 lbs this week
Down to 241 even

Yay!! I'm very happy with that number. I would love to continue to lose 1 to 1 1/2 pounds per week, somewhere in that range.

It was a stressful week for me, probably the most stressful week I've had all year. But there is a positive - I didn't turn to food!! Normally I would have but I didn't realize until it was almost over that it never even occurred to me quit calorie counting or walking.

I kept to my goal of not weighing daily and surprisingly, I like it. My mood wasn't affected by what I was seeing on the scale each day because it was in the closet. Instead, I just focused on my calories and walking. I also think not weighing daily helped me reaffirm that this is a process, I can't expect to see daily changes/results. So I'm going to continue to weigh weekly for now.

My plan for the coming week is to do exactly what I did this past week, stay within my calories and do my walking every day. I didn't quite hit 10,000 steps two days this past week so hopefully I can get all 7 days this coming week. Also, I've started tracking my water and am trying to be better about drinking it, but it still needs work. I'd like to drink somewhere between 8-12 cups every day. The other thing I want to work on is getting more steps throughout the day before my evening walking. I'd like to have about 3,500 by the time I go for our nightly walk. Since I work from home I think that's going to be challenging for me but I can definitely improve it/work toward that goal.

16.8/50.8 pounds lost

177 days til Disney!!

Woo hoo!!!!!!

That is great that you managed to stick with your program through all the stress! I'm glad that the stress is behind you and that you can resume your regular routine.

Interesting report on the results of hiding the scale. I'm not brave enough to try it but it is definitely food for thought. It is ridiculous to let the number on a scale set your mood for the day but I do it all the time.

 

[bethk78]

Keep up the fantastic work! So glad that you handled the stress without food! Hope the stress abates soon.

Thanks Kriii. The stressful week is behind me thankfully. I am struggling a bit with food this week but disruptions in my routine always seem to trigger that and I'm getting a handle on it. I hope you're doing well.

Great job again this week - a third of the way to your goal already!

Thanks Dentam! I don't think I realized that I was a third of the way to my goal, now I'm happy, happy, happy!!

Woo hoo!!!!!!

That is great that you managed to stick with your program through all the stress! I'm glad that the stress is behind you and that you can resume your regular routine.

Interesting report on the results of hiding the scale. I'm not brave enough to try it but it is definitely food for thought. It is ridiculous to let the number on a scale set your mood for the day but I do it all the time.

Thanks Maggie. I do want to weigh myself today though just to see the damage from Saturday & Sunday's eating disasters, but I won't, or at least I haven't yet. It is weird how the daily numbers affected me, even when I tried to be logical about it, the emotional side of me couldn't help but interfere.

 

[bethk78]

Well, not a great start to the week…

Day 48 of 224, Sat 8/8

*Did not* log my food in MFP today. I attended a wedding most of today. Ate half an egg salad sandwich before I left which was a good choice and lasted me a long time. But I made the mistake in not packing water and because I had to arrive so early and it was a pretty warm day, I was so thirsty! Finally lemonade was put out and I downed two big glasses. I didn’t do too terrible at dinner. I ate a pulled pork sandwich, baked beans and kale salad, all reasonable portions. Ate slower than everyone else, I’m so glad my speed of eating has slowed and I’m savoring my food more. Had another half glass of lemonade then a half glass of water. I split a piece of wedding cake with DH. I would’ve had my own and maybe even another piece but the cake was just so-so and I love cake! Oh and I had a bubble gum snow cone. That was kind of nice. I’m definitely a kid at heart and it made me feel like a kid again.

The wedding was at a vineyard, a very pretty location. Took 6,948 steps today, almost all at the vineyard. Got home at 11:30p and by the time we changed there was about 20 minutes left to walk. DH was so sweet and offered to walk but I was tired, feeling lazy and just wanted to park it on the sofa so that’s what we did. Looking back I wished I would have taken a short walk. It would have gone by quickly anyway and I would have been better off.

Then we made some nachos: tortilla chips, chicken, cheese, salsa, sour cream & avocado. I did not measure the food or log the calories which I regret. I guess I figured it didn’t matter since I didn’t track the wedding food but looking back I realized the sooner I can get back on track and under control, the better, so I should have measured and logged it. I think I ate maybe one serving too many of the chips, but the quantity of the rest of the stuff wasn’t too bad.

If I could redo the day, there are 3 things I would have changed. First I would have packed water. And that’s what I’m planning on doing for anything from now on that puts me outside the house for more than two hours. Second, I would have gone for a short walk when I got home just to add to my steps and maybe a short walk with the puppers before going to the wedding. Lastly, I would have measured my food when I got home and logged it.

Not a terrible eating/exercise day but not "lose weight" great either, definitely room for improvement.

*

Day 49 of 224, Sun 8/9

Did not log my food again today. I had my heart set on a cheat meal all week and I didn’t want to skip it just because I already had a not-so-great eating day yesterday at the wedding. Well, my cheat meal pretty much turned into a cheat day. We bought a large meat pizza and bag of kale salad at Costco. Then a half dozen glazed donuts at Krispy Kreme for me and ice cream sandwiches for DH from Albertsons. See what’s happening here, a cheat meal is turning into a cheat day because that is so.much.food.

I ate two slices of pizza, a bowl of salad and 3 donuts and I felt soooo sick afterwards!! I just can’t eat that much anymore like I used to. I felt so sick and junky for hours afterwards. DH too. So we talked it over, decided that we wanted to continue the cheat meal once a week, that we looked forward to it and it helped keep us on track during the week, but that the volume of food is getting out of control, much more than can be eaten during one meal, like I said before, turning into a cheat day, taking it too far. Not worth the sick/junky feeling, the guilt or the gain. So I suggested we toss out the rest before our food had a chance to digest and we could polish off the remainder and I was surprised that DH was on board for that. So I tossed half of a large pizza, 3 donuts and 2 ice cream bars in the kitchen trash and then took it to the outside trash can. Looking back, I should have tossed the kale salad too. It’s not so great on calories and fat with the dressing and I polished it off later by myself. Ended the day with half an egg salad sandwich. It was wasteful to toss all that food but it was the right choice for us.

So tired and soooo thirsty today. I drank 14 cups of water, I just couldn’t get enough. And I’m definitely retaining it. I feel like I have lip injections or something. Hopefully I’ll flush it in the next day or two.

Went for an 80 minute walk outside and was pretty sluggish (probably because of big meal plus tired and dehydrated from yesterday), but got it done, one step in front of another. Finished off with a 10 minute walk inside, totaling 10,603 steps for the day.

So, didn’t do great again today but we did make *some* good choices - tossing the excess junk food and getting our steps, plus we made a plan for next week, buying smaller portions for a cheat meal only and not a cheat day. Hopefully the damage (on the scale) is minimal.

 

[Kriii]

I think that the person who doesn't overindulge at a special event is rare, so don't feel bad. It isn't as if you will be attending weddings or special events every weekend. It's you should feel proud of yourself for tossing out the extra food and regaining control of your nutrition. Being able to analyze the reasons for overeating, figure out how you could have made better choices, move on, and apply this knowledge the next time you are faced with a similar situation is the important thing IMHO. I also like how you went ahead and kept to the exercise routine. You are really developing a good mindset.

 

[Dentam]

I had a similar "cheat day" yesterday - breakfast at Chick-fil-a and lunch at Taco Bell. And... it wasn't worth it! I did weigh myself just to see the impact and I gained 1.4 lbs. Mostly water weight at this point I'm sure but I think it's all part of the process of making a permanent change to eating habits. I think you're doing great and learning along the way. It's excellent that you and your husband are on the same page - having his support will be a huge help as you continue along!

 

[bethk78]

I think that the person who doesn't overindulge at a special event is rare, so don't feel bad. It isn't as if you will be attending weddings or special events every weekend. It's you should feel proud of yourself for tossing out the extra food and regaining control of your nutrition. Being able to analyze the reasons for overeating, figure out how you could have made better choices, move on, and apply this knowledge the next time you are faced with a similar situation is the important thing IMHO. I also like how you went ahead and kept to the exercise routine. You are really developing a good mindset.

Thanks Kriii. Yes, I'm constantly learning and oftentimes relearning.

I had a similar "cheat day" yesterday - breakfast at Chick-fil-a and lunch at Taco Bell. And... it wasn't worth it!

I've never had Chick-fil-a, we don't have them here in OR, at least not that I know of. I'd like to try them some day, I hear about them a lot on the Disboards. I agree, lately when I splurge/eat out, a lot of times it ends up not being worth it.

I did weigh myself just to see the impact and I gained 1.4 lbs. Mostly water weight at this point I'm sure but I think it's all part of the process of making a permanent change to eating habits.

Definitely water weight. I weighed midweek too, just to see, and then put the scale back away til Saturday.

I think you're doing great and learning along the way. It's excellent that you and your husband are on the same page - having his support will be a huge help as you continue along!

Yes, he's a great support, I honestly don't think I could do it without him. We gain weight together and lose weight together. He's lost a fair bit of weight over the past year and I can see how much happier he is and more active, great motivation to keep going.

 

[Kriii]

That is wonderful that you have such a good support! My husband isn't overweight, but has had cholesterol issues for years and controls it through diet and exercise. He has to really watch consumption of the unhealthy foods, especially because he just loves his bread and cereal carbs. To help him, we just don't keep the junk food in the house. I can tell you what has worked for his cheat meals if that helps those posters who have the cheat meal days. He never cheats during the week. On the weekends, he keeps to his usual eating routine, unless we are eating a restaurant or guests for dinner somewhere. He orders basically healthy meals from the menu, generally chicken and never red meat. He eats no dessert if we are in a restaurant. He really doesn't have a sweet tooth except for apple pie and my oatmeal cookies. He does eat whatever is served at a private home and enjoys it, but most of the time sticks to one serving of the main dish. This is usually when he gets his pizza, pastas and red meats. He never takes leftovers home. I think this has helped him because he still gets to eat his pizza, french fries and apple pie, but not too much and not too often. If we are home on Saturday night, I'll bake him two or three large cookies. By not baking a full batch of cookies, no temptation to over indulge. Once his three cookies are gone they are gone. My own cheat meals, pre-elimination diet days, consisted of planning for a glass of wine and a cookie on Saturday nights. I really looked forward to this and enjoyed it very much. I hope this information helps those of you who are figuring out how to incorporate a cheat meal into the overall diet plan without going too far off track. We look at "cheats" as the treats we build into the overall diet not opportunities to just eat anything and everything. I do think planned splurges are important for sticking to the healthy eating over the long term.