Week 12 Check-In: Overcoming Roadblocks to Weight Loss

My total weight loss is now at 24 lbs, just one pound way from the magical 25 pound number. It's special because for each 25 lbs weight loss, I'm going to get a massage to reward myself and take new weight loss pictures to document my progress.

My topic of discussion this week is "staying the course." It seems that so many times in the past when I've tried to lose weight "stuff got in the way" -- a bad day, a bad week, problems at work, health issues, financial problems, or family issues. Besides stuff, time can also get in the way of losing weight -- lack of time to cook good meals, easy access to fast unhealthy foods you can grab in a rush, working overtime, and not enough time and energy to get my butt to a gym.

It's hard to overcome all these roadblocks to weight loss ... and easy to throw up the hands saying "the hell with it." Then you fall back into poor eating habits like buying a gallon of ice cream, splurging on a super-duper hamburger, eating spagetti with meatballs, or ordering pizza to be delivered to your home.

I've played those games before and the result has been years of being fat, unhealthy, and unable to live my life fully. I think the key to "staying the course" and conquering the road blocks is persistence. If you fail, immediately pick yourself up and get back on track. Do not let stuff control your life, take the reins and steer your own course.

Week 11 Check-In: Making It Through Personal or Holiday Events

Hi everyone, it's week 11 and unfortunately I gained 2 lbs, so my total weight loss stands at 21 lbs. What happened to me this week was a "potluck event."

I decided to go to a friend's potluck party and knew there would be lots of tempting food. In order to minimize my hunger, I ate before going. However, by the time I arrived at the party an hour later and I entered her house, I was met by a platter of blue chips and gucamole dip strategically placed near the front door. Guests would arrive and stand around the snack food while munching and talking, including me. It was down hill from there.

The dining room table was lined with mostly healthy foods like 8-types of green, bean, and rice salads, a few no-no pasta dishes, and a few desserts. But my problem was not "what I ate" ... it was that I just "ate too much."

Afterward, I was scared to get on the scale. Sure enough, the next day, I had gained 3 lbs. So, I spent the rest of the week trying to lose the extra weight.

I told my sob story to my trainer, and she gave me a few ideas for the next tempting event: whenever you feel the urge to take another helping of food, drink lots of water instead; don't sit near the food, place yourself so you don't see or smell it; engage in conversations with other people in order to keep your mind off the food; and if you are on the verge of commiting a food sin, go for a walk instead.

Here's more tips that I found on the Internet to help you make it through personal or holiday events:

• Going to a holiday party? Have one small plate of your favorites and enjoy every bite. Get in the habit of eating your meals slowly, stopping when you start to feel full and always leaving something on your plate.


• One way to stay motivated during the holidays is to set exercise targets, such as entering a 5K race right around Thanksgiving and then raising the stakes by entering a 10K sometime before New Year's.


• Have some of your old favorite foods if you really want them on Thanksgiving and Christmas. All you need to do is change how you eat them. In other words, just have a taste of them instead of a huge helping or two. Slender and fit people do not eat buffet size portions but they do indulge sometimes; they just don’t overeat. This option will only work if you choose to eat items that are not your trigger foods.


• When you plan ahead, you can predict and control your world. You can call your host and get a preview of the menu and decide ahead of time what you'll eat, who you will talk with, and how you will stay focused even during the party.


• Boosting your protein intake with lean meats, skinless poultry, low-fat dairy, seafood, and beans will keep you feeling satisfied longer. When you visit the buffet table, opt for these lean protein choices and complement them with high-fiber grains, fruits, and vegetables, which also help fill you up for relatively few calories.

Week 10 Check-In: Losing Weight No Matter What

I'm happy to report that the changes suggested by my trainer as talked about last week, really made a difference. I have now lost another 4 lbs, for a total of 23 lbs. It's amazing to me because it's the most weight I've lost in a long, long, long time.

Probably the biggest change I made this week was limiting the Weight Watcher snacks and switching to apples, pears, cheese, yogurt, and peanut butter. Besides my walking stairs daily during the work week, I'm now working out twice a week.

The trainer has me "building my core," saying everything comes off of having a strong core. So I'm doing wall pushups, situps on a large rubber ball, strength building on equipment, riding a stationary bike, and the elliptical machine.

I'm just a few pounds away from a 25 lb weight loss. I decided long ago to celebrate my losing weight by getting a massage at every quarter loss (25, 50, 75 and 100 lbs). I'm looking forward to that massage in the near future. Luckily, I received two gift certificates for massages, so I've been saving them for these special occasions.

I'll also be having new pictures taken of me to show the difference between my beginning weight and progress. I hope to post them soon.

I must admit it has been a struggle to stay on my weight loss journey -- I'm working a full-time job and taking 4 college classes each week, I write several publications, and the rest of my time is spent going homework. My slate is full, so it's really tough to also concentrate on losing weight.

We all make excuses why we can't lose weight: "I'm too busy," "I don't have time to exercise," "I have too many holiday events to attend." But, as I have shown during my 100 lb journey -- if you really want to lose it and get healthy, then you'll put in the effort NO MATTER WHAT.

Here's wishing you the stamina, heart, desire, and direction to conquer the "stuff" that gets in your way of losing weight.

Learning to Eat Slowly

It's time to talk about eating slowly. I hesitate to bring up the subject because it's a big problem for me. As far back as I can remember, I've always been the first finished at a table filled with other people. I don't know why? There seems to be a little demon in me who says "I'm starving. Feed meeeee." So that's what I've done.

I wasn't a starving child or adult -- so there is no logical reason for me to feel that way. I presume it has more to do with emotional eating, reaching for that quick high like a drug addict. I must admit though, eating food is something I enjoy. It puts a smile on my face to think about eating a bag of potato chips, a slice of French bread, or an ice cream sundae. These are my trigger foods that I can't stop eating, once I start.

So on this blog, I'm going to start exploring the phenomena of "eating more slowly." Below are tips I found on the Internet to start this trek:

Consume Fewer Calories - Researchers from the University of Rhode Island at Kingston found that people who ate more slowly consumed 70 fewer calories per meal than speed eaters. The study suggested that it takes about 20 minutes for your stomach to produce the hormones to tell your brain that you are full.

Sit Down While Eating - Eat only while sitting down. Much extra food is consumed on the run. Making it a point to sit down while eating will help you think about how much you are consuming.

Drink Water - Drink a 12 ounce glass of water before eating. It will take up room in your stomach and make you feel less hungry.

Chew Food Throughly - It is well known that digestion begins in the mouth, where the saliva is mixed with the food and starts to break it down into smaller chemicals that can be absorbed and nourish the body. Chewing food thoroughly promotes smooth, complete digestion. Basically the slower you eat, the faster and more efficiently you metabolize the food. When food is swallowed whole it makes it more difficult for the body to absorb all the important nutrients (e.g vitamins, minerals, and amino acids).

Enhance Pleasure - Not only does eating slowly and mindfully help you eat less, it enhances the pleasure of the dining experience. To master the art of slow eating, put on some music, light a few candles, turn off the TV and any other distractions, and concentrate on your meal.

Stop Eating When Full - Most thin people are not members of the clean-plate club. Instead of mindlessly eating however much they are served, they pay attention to internal hunger cues and satiety. "Thin people are tuned into noticing when they are satisfied, and they stop eating even if there is food left," says Jill Fleming, M.S., R.D., author of Thin People Don't Clean Their Plates. "They often report that they don't like that feeling of being uncomfortably full, so they've learned how to stop before they reach it."

Stop and Smell the Roses - Eating can become a lot more pleasurable if you slow down. If you just wolf it down you never notice nuances in taste and texture. It’s like trying to appreciate the nature, the light, the colors, the beautiful surroundings while driving really fast.

Put the Fork Down - The classic advice is to put down your fork and then chew. Then to pick up your fork again after you’ve swallowed, take another bite and repeat the process. I like this tip because it forces you to slow down, instead of taking the stressed energy from your day and letting it cause you to wolf down everything on your plate.

Nourish Yourself - In the book, Ten Habits of Natrually Slim People, the author says to focus on the spiritual and emotional side of eating. The author suggests we nourish ourselves with what we truly need--love, fulfillment, etc.--and our diets will naturally follow.

Week 9 Check-In: Eating Healthy and Goals Review

On September 30, 2008, I set some Goals to reach by my two month anniversary of November 2, 2008. I'm now claiming partial success. I did not obtain a 25 lbs. weight loss (I'm at 19 lbs. loss) and can't claim that I consistently exercised three times a week, but having these goals has motivated me to step up my game. Yesterday, I met with a personal trainer, who I will be seeing once a week for the foreseeable future.

First we sat down and she had me list the usual foods and times I eat on a daily basis. I was thinking I was eating well, and would probably pass her review with flying colors. But, no, I was surprised the trainer had lots of comments to make.

She said my timing on eating 6 small meals a day was good but to add more veggies to my diet; stay with white or soy cheeses instead of yellow; avoid empty iceberg lettuce salads and eat more nutritious exotic lettuces like butter, romaine, arugula or spinach; and have more fruits, proteins, or natural snacks like a spoon full of peanut or almond butter, yogurt, apple, cottage or string cheese instead of Weight Watcher's products.

The trainer also said to avoid creamy salad dressings like Thousand Island and Ranch that contain preservatives, and go with clear dressings like oil-and-vinegar or make-your-own dressings.

Another no-no I had been doing was purchasing pre-packaged sushi in a 9 or 12 piece pack. The trainer said to eat no more than 6 pieces at a time because they contain a lot of white, sticky rice.

Although I've come a long way since my pre-100 lb-journey days of stuffing my face with ice cream, lots of bread, and carb loaded packaged foods; I need to make further improvements by getting the rest of the processed foods out of my diet, eating more natural and nutritious items, going with "whole wheat" instead of "wheat" products that are like brown white-bread and keeping the portions small.

Here's my new goals:

January 2, 2008 - I have achieved a total weight loss 40 lbs.
January 2, 2008 - Besides stair walking, I go to the gym or exercise at least three times a week for 45 minutes or more.
August 2, 2009 - My weight loss has averaged about 10 lbs a month, and I have lost 100 lbs!