Week 9 of My Weight Loss Journey: Work Keeps Happening

How Am I Supposed to Get in Shape if I Work All the Time?

This was a tough week. Work was crazy. I had a conference I had to attend at the beginning of the week. That was Monday and Tuesday. Then Wednesday through Friday I was glued to my desk proofing November's ballots. I think I mentioned I work in elections. It's a lot like being an accountant. It's not crazy work ALL the time, but there are definitely times of the year where it picks up. And no, it's not just one day a year on Election Day. To put on an election starts months in advance. There's candidate filing, creating the ballots, proofing them, coding for the equipment, testing the equipment to ensure the coding works, recruiting & training pollworkers, loading supplies, etc. All of that is either work I do or things I'm asked about and have to help new directors deal with. Any way, back to my journey. 

The Good: 

I did manage to walk 10,000 steps Sunday, Monday & Tuesday. I also walked 10,000+ steps today as we went on a hike. I have also been staying consistent with my resistance training. Again, it's just at home with adjustable dumbbells and a kettlebell, but I like it, I can see changes and it keeps me consistent. In fact, Thursday I absolutely did NOT want to workout. It was 10:40pm and all I wanted to do was go to sleep. But I sucked it up, told myself it's just 10 minutes, and I did the workout. 

The Bad:

I went to the bar to hang out with work friends and had beers. 2 the first night. 3 beers the second night. I know what you're thinking. 2-3 beers? That's it? Well, yes, so I guess I could put that part up in the good column, but they were beers nonetheless. So lots of carbs. On top of that, I fell off the tracking calories and macro wagon on Wednesday, Thursday AND Friday and kind of went crazy with carbs. 

Summary: 

This morning I weighed in at 200lbs. I was so happy the last couple of weeks being below 200 consistently. However, considering the beers, the carbs, breads, sweets, etc., gaining 1.2lbs since last Saturday is not the end of the world. However, I was up 2.4lbs from the week before that last week so I'm up a total of 3.6lbs over the last two weeks. THAT also is not the end of the world, but it is a harsh reminder that I need to focus and track. When I track my calories, I do much better. 

Week 8 of My Weight Loss Journey - Hello Carbs!

Last I reported, I had to get a molar extracted. All in all, it went very well and I never had any pain. I did a really good job not using straws and only eating soft foods. Too good of a job with soft foods. I went crazy with the pasta and breads because they were soft and easy to eat. I also had oatmeal every morning for breakfast. I hadn't had oatmeal since I think I was a kid or maybe when I had little kids of my own. But even that would be 20 years ago. 

Last week was 197.2 and this morning I weighed in at 198.8. I'm honestly not even that worried about it. I know what I need to do to get back on track so I can lock in again this week with the eating habits. 

I am happy to report that I managed to keep up with my resistance training. However, I did not do very well on my daily steps. In fact, I don't think I went over 4500 steps any day this week. 

I did get sick on Thursday, which is very rare for me. I credit it to the L-Lysine I take which is an anti-viral supplement. I take it for cold sores and it works great! I hardly ever get them anymore and if I do, they tend to be very small and barely noticable. But - back to being sick. I felt it come on Thursday with a sore throat and then on Friday I felt like total garbage. Today I'm actually better. I feel stuffy, but overall pretty good. My wife has been sick for the last week so it's possible I got it from her, but I doubt it. I think I probably got it from shaking hands with strangers this week at work. 

I do have to go away AGAIN for work this week, but I usually do pretty good on trips. I can easily walk and eat right when it's just me - most of the time. I still have the tendancy to "reward" myself for a job well done when I'm on the road. 

But,like I said; The tooth (or lack of) is healed nicely, I'm feeling better from my cold or whatever virus I picked up, and it's time to lock back in. I really want to get below 195lbs. I think psychologically, that will be a big win for me. Just like when I got back below 200. 

Week 7 of My Weight Loss Journey

Week 7 Update: Started Blog at 205lbs - Now Down to 197.2lbs

Well, I'm seven weeks in to this plan and so far so good. This morning I weight in at 197.2lbs. I do have to say that I can't trust this number to hold as there were extenuating circumstances this week. 

Once again, I was called out of town for work. However, I did hit my 10K steps on Monday and Tuesday and even managed 9K steps on Wednesday, the day I drove home. But Thursday was a different story. The hotel didn't have a gym so I brought my resistance bands and did 3 sets of exercises in the hotel room.

Turns out that I had conveniently forgotten - or didn't want to think about - a dentist appointment. Turns out that after two failed root canals, they just ended up having to pull on of my molars. Luckily, it is way in the back by my wisdom tooth so it's not noticable. However, it did mean that from Thursday morning until Friday lunchtime, I didn't eat anything. I had ZERO appetite! In fact, I was also told not to elevate my heart rate to aid the blot clot in forming so I didn't do any walking or weights.

I actually weighed in at 195.2 Friday morning as a result of not eating. I did make myself eat on Friday and I have more of an appetitie today. I'm limited to soft foods so I've stopped trying to watch my carbs and am instead enjoying jell-o, pudding and flavored yogurts for a few days until I can eat more solid foods again. I did push the envelope today and I had a deli-meat chicken sandwich with havarti cheese. All soft foods and I took little bites on my good side to be extra safe. 

I know what you're thinking. Since you've started this blog, you've only lost 8 pounds! It's true. BUT - I can see some muscle tone I didn't have before. I feel better. My clothes fit better. I have more confidence. But most of all, I don't really feel like I'm lacking anything. Sure. I'd love to eat more sweets, but here's the thing. I have had sweets and I'm still losing a pound per week. Over a year, that's 52 pounds and again, I don't feel like I'm dieting. It feels more like being more aware. I can have ice cream. I can have cake. Would I like more. Yep. Do I need more? Definitely not. Before, I'd have given in to the moment but now I'm making smarter choices.