Well, I still haven’t lost anything. I can’t even remember how long now I’ve been at 205. So much for losing the two pounds a week I’d love to say goodbye to.
I would like to say I caught Plateau Disease from y’all 
but I’m afraid I’ve been stricken with this particular illness for quite some time :(.
Too many to thank individually for your thoughts and encourgement during this frustrating plateau I’m in. Thank you everyone!
Yesterday I weighed in at 181.6 and today at 182.0 (late heavy dinner last night) so I’m hoping I may have broken out of my 186-184 plateau I’ve been at for almost a month now.
Just a theory but perhaps this will help someone else - I increased my caloric intake. Reviewing my food logs and calorie intake levels I realized I had dramatically dropped below where I should have been. I had been targeting for 1600 calories but realized for the last few weeks I’d been down to 1400 and sometimes as low as 1200 for the day. (34, 5’9, 184lbs & 1200 calories = bad) I believe my body was going into a bit of “starvation” mode and thereby preventing the weight loss.
Oh, and as for this question:
Great question and I appreciate the point being made in asking. I feel great. I am toning up, most noticable in the arms, shoulders, chest, and legs. Stomach is still fat vs. flat. Most of my clothes are very baggy now, especially jeans and shorts from last year. I kept some jeans from before I gained this weight and they are about 2 sizes smaller than I’ve been wearing over the winter - they fit but are a little tight still. I think I’m a bit between sizes but it is progress. All that said, I’m still hard on myself and push/motivate myself by quantifiable goals - scale and measurements. 
Thanks again, this forum has been a great outlet for me.
Mean “Getting thinner” Joe
Woo-hoo!
I was afraid that over Passover I would have put on weight. This because at the seder there is a minimum amount of matzah and wine that one is required to consume and that alone took up most of my points for the day. Plus, for the previous two weeks, I had put back on small amounts of weight. So, I wasn’t too enthusiastic going to last night’s weigh in.
Well, I dropped 4.4 pounds from my last weigh in (two weeks ago). This makes my weight 161.6 and my total weight loss 85.6 pounds. I am now less than four pounds from my goal weight (158)!
Zev Steinhardt
Weigh-in day.
146.6 - 0.6 pounds down!
One pound to go to weigh the least I have this century!
I’ve started saying my beliefs out loud to myself every morning. Okay, okay, I’ll share!
*[ul]
[li]I see myself as a healthy woman at my goal weight of 131 pounds.[/li][li]I see myself training diligently for Grandma’s marathon and running it comfortably.[/li][li]I see myself succeeding at work.[/li][li]I see myself enjoying eating healthy foods in sensible portions.[/li][/ul]I often visualize myself as already having attained the outcome of my goals, seeing and feeling the success in advance.
I am incredibly determined to succeed in my goals.
I am completely willing to make dramatic changes in my lifestyle to succeed in my goals.
I feel confident that I will reach my objectives in the time I’ve given myself.
I am totally committed to continuing the daily actions, both big and small, that achieving my goals require.
I am truly enjoying the challenge of reaching my goals.
I am taking the time that is required to learn the new skills and steps necessary to reach my goals.
Setbacks and delays are tiny and insignificant.
Setbacks and delays do not slow my progress.
Setbacks and delays make me more determined to succeed.
My little daily victories make me feel like continuing my quest for my goals.
Every right decision and action feels important.
Every right decision and action keeps me motivated to forge ahead.
I find it truly easy to give up my habits and the things associated with my old ways of doing things.
I am at complete ease with accepting the new habits, routines and responsibilities associated with reaching my goals.
At critical moments of decision, I think about why I want to attain my goals.*
It seems to be working. Now to go home and run 3 miles like the FBA I am!
sigh I weighed myself this morning and I was back at 222. Stupid Bob is here though so I’m blaming it all on it.
That explains my uncontrollable cravings I’ve been having the past few days. I just gotta get my resolve back. Really, I’m not. I won’t let this get me down. Not after I go sit in the corner and cry for a bit. :-p
Just another Doper, checking in and gathering inspiration from this thread…
My goal isn’t really weight loss, per se, but weight control and gaining back the strength I’ve lost since I stopped working out regularly.
Current weight/height: 125 pounds, 5 foot 2 inches in height. (I really think women should be able to weigh their breasts, then subtract that weight from the total!)
Goal weight: n/a, since I’m going more for health than weight loss.
Current excercise:
Errr. Um. Using a computer most of the day, and puttering around the house.
Goal for excercise:
Start weightlifting again. Start dancing again, even if it’s by following a VHS tape from home.
Current diet:
I’m a university student. 'Nuff said, I belive. Acutally, I’m not bad on this regard. I prefer to drink milk, juice, tea, etc., and not soda, and my idea of a good snack is some dried cranberries, not chips or chocolate. However, I’ve shifted to a few big meals a day routine, which just doesn’t work out for me. I cant eat enough at a meal to last me until the next one, and then my body throws fits for not eating enough. Adding snacks inbetween the big meals gives me waaaaay too many calories for my current (lack of) activity level.
Goal for diet:
Contiune shifting away from the sodas for drinks, and resume having lots of little ‘snacks’ during a day, rather than a few bigger meals.
Here’s to slowly changing my lifestyle back… and here’s to the rest of you, keep it up!
<< Here little chocolate bunny… >>
fizzestothetop don’t go cry in the corner! small setbacks like these are uber familiar to anyone trying to get more fit, and that’s just what this is-- a small setback. You’ll be back on track soon. It’s just so hard to keep on track all the time. Hey, what are we, Super People??
MeanJoe congratulations on finally breaking out of that plateau!
Here’s a scale-related question… today I jumped on the scale and saw that I may have lost a pound (down from 205 to 204). To be sure, I stepped off and then back on again. 203! Then 205. Then 205 again. Does this happen to anyone else? Is it a sign I just need to buy a better scale? (mine was the cheapest they had at the store).
My scale at home is crap, it does the same as yours but sometimes with a five pound difference. I’ve been relying on the one at the gym, as it’s tested on a monthly basis by some official body.
It happens to me, and we’ve got a middlin’-quality digital scale. When I weigh myself in the mornngs, I usually step on it several times, at different spots on the bathroom floor. (I even know which spots are likely to give better/worse readings, and discount them appropriately.) This morning, for instance, my readings were 183.0, 183.5, a bunch of 184.0’s, a 184.5, and a 185.5. The 183 and the 185.5 were with the scale at familiar ‘good’ and ‘bad’ places on the floor, respectively. This keeps me from being overly elated or depressed on account of a single fluke reading.
Also, since on my low-impact diet, I really only expect to lose a pound every week or two (overall, I’ve lost 10 lbs. in 16 weeks), having a cluster of readings each morning and evening allows me to perceive smaller shifts in my weight than I otherwise would, and gives me more of a feeling of positive momentum. If I go from a cluster of readings like the one above to one with a 183, two 183.5’s, three 184s, and a 185, it’s an observable change, even though it’s slight; as always, the main thing is how well it holds up from one day to the next.
That’s how I handle the variation in my scale’s readings, anyway. I don’t know if you have to be a numbers junkie or not to be able to handle it the way I do, but it works for me.
Anyhow, my move off the 185 plateau has held up pretty well this week; while the numbers are bouncing around, they’re bouncing around 184 now. Of course, tomorrow my wife and I get on a plane to visit the in-laws for a long weekend, which is inevitably a major diet-buster. At Christmas, I jogged every day while I was down there, and that helped. I’m planning to do the same on this visit, twice a day if I can manage it.
Congrats, zev and Gazelle and Mean Joe!
Hang in there, fizzy! Remember, we all have our ups and downs…you wimminfolk more than us guys. ‘Stupid Bob’, huh? That’s a new one to me.
Mazel tov, zev and Gazelle and Mean Joe. fizzestothetop, just keep doing the good stuff and notice how you feel, not just how much weight you’re losing.
Today several of my university students approached me tentatively and asked if I’m on a diet, and if so could they have a copy. We had a long duscussing during which I encouraged them to talk to their doctors and then to create a student health and wellness support group within their major. They liked the idea, and I agreed to consult with them about motivation for change and using what they’ve learned academically about behavior management to guid their group. It was a great conversation and they seemed enthusiastic.
My new scale (Thinner, $40 at Bed, Bath & Beyond) only has a 1.5 pound fluctuation.
I’m down to my Fall 1996 weight and just put on a pair of size 14 pants for the first time since summer 1996 (I was up to a fluctuating 18W-22W).
Way to go Shoshana! It’s so neat when you’ve lost enough weight that others start commenting on it!
Hey,
I’m still here, hangin’ in, and I was wondering if any of y’all are using Stacker 2 to help with your weight loss? I have hypertension, controlled with meds and the diet and exercise, but I was wondering I can use the ephedra free Stacker 2 or if there is anything I can use that won’t affect me adversely because of the high BP.
Congrats to my bud MeanJoe and to all of ya’ll who are on this train with me!
Love
Q
Ginger: I found a Tanita on Ebay for 35 bucks.
Quasi
Kezermezer & Ginger,
I second a recommendation of a Tanita scale. I bought mine retail for around 70.00 but cheaper models are available and as Quasi pointed out - there is eBay (Why didn’t I think of that before buying retail?)
MeanJoe
Well, I seem to have broken my plateau! I added two Richard Simmons tape workouts (Blast Off Disco) to my regular 3x a week at the gym, and I’m down 2 pounds this week!
Congratulations, norinew! I’ve been at a conference this weekend. Heavy on the carbs–I kept to my diet but did have one cookie this afternoon. I can now actually jog short distances, though my knee stops me from doing much of it. Still, it’s nice to see the treadmill hit 5.4 mph even for a few minutes.
Shoshana, I’ve given up the treadmill entirely in favor of the EFX Elliptical Stair Stepper (I know that a couple of weeks ago, I said it was evil, but like all women I reserve the right to change my mind :)).
The first time I used the EFX, I did 20 minutes, and I hurt for 4 days! The second time, I cut back to 12 minutes and started building up. Now I can do 20 minutes with little problem. Over the next few weeks, I’m going to build up to 30 minutes, then I’m going to start upping the resistance/incline and maybe start using some of the preprorammed courses.
I may have even lost weight. I’m still stunned.
Stuff I did right: I went out jogging Saturday morning and evening, and spent Sunday reorganizing their shed, and got the stuff from the temporary rented shed back into the permanent shed so that they can stop paying rent on the rented shed.
Stuff I did wrong: there were 2 meals while I was down there where there was an essentially unlimited quantity of great food on the table. I didn’t restrain myself at all.
And when I got there, there was one of these bargain packs with about 8 cheese danishes on the table, and it was gone after a couple of days. I had a lot to do with that - stuff like danishes, gooey coffeecakes, Cinnabons, and jelly donuts are my big weaknesses, and I never have them around the house on account of that. While at the in-laws, I simply gave in to the Dark Side. I always do.
Lucky break: there were only two meals where I had gargantuan quantities of food thrown at me. Lucky indeed, considering we were there from Friday lunch to Monday breakfast.
Anyhow, the scale readings this morning were a mix of 182.5s and 184s, mostly the former. And my jeans (36" waist still, but maybe not for much longer) are feeling looser all the time.
RTFirefly - Congrats, those types of weekends can be very challenging.
Is it time to start a new thread? 7 pages is getting a bit long.