This is your life, and you're living it KCCC. It's not a diet, remember!
You are so wise and preemptive - you'll be fine and can enjoy some excellent chocolate at the same time... and the young man will be thrilled!
Mimi
![Very Happy :D](./images/smilies/icon_biggrin.gif)
Moderators: Soprano, automatedeating
Thanks, sophiasapienta! I have to admit, my suddenly-lowered activity levels have been problematical for me. The "unintended consequences" of changing my job has been to upset the formerly steady-state balance I had. But I'm pushing on both sides of the calorie/activity equation, and doing it **without** panic or an overboard reaction, which makes me very happy. (In the past, recognizing that my weight was rising would have sent me into a spiral that would have only made the problem worse!) And I am very pleased that No-S lets me SEE what I'm doing clearly enough to make just a few sustainable changes without having to go back to counting!sophiasapientia wrote:KCCC -- Way to go! I too have found that minor adjustments can make a difference. It sounds like you're making some very sustainable changes to your routine and that's awesome.
Way to go!!! You're doing great!On the exercise front, I broke 10,000 steps on Friday, had a "personal best" of 15000 on Saturday (went to an amusement park - you walk a lot there!) and broke 10,000 on Monday (off work, so could walk). Not bad. Sunday was embarressingly little - about 2000 - so we won't mention that. The overall trend is more steps in even an "average" day. I've got 7000 so far today.
Hi, Grammy G! Thanks for stopping by. I have an "Accusplit Eagle 1720" and I wear it clipped to my waistband just up from my right hipbone. It seems pretty accurate - if anything, it sometimes fails to count steps. But I think the measurements are consistent from day to day, and since my goal is to increase overall, that's all I need - as long as I can tell "this is MORE," I'm good. (I did have to talk myself out of being too fussy about details, though, which is why I round down to the nearest 500. Otherwise, I get caught up in "should I add 50 for walking around the house before I put it on?"... and that's just silly.Grammy G wrote:KCCC, I have never had a pedometer that I felt was acurate. I always seem to have too many steps on it after a bit of walking. where do you place yours? (yep, I do the stride thing to regulate it) i just threw three away..one freebee..one cheapie..one $$$one. I think it is me..(':(')
You, by the way are doing a great job of getting those steps in!!
You are an inspiration ..you talk the talk and walk the walk..whoo hoo!!
Grammy, this made me laugh! It's a constant "re-balance" to make sure all the plates are spinning. I just try to be aware of "what needs attention" as much as I can, and include myself in the mix. (It's that "put on your own oxygen mask first" thing.)Grammy G wrote: You do such a great job of balancing your life!! When you get to be my age, I am sure you will look back and think :"How in the world did I do all of that!!" You seem to have found the elusive balance time for yourself, time for family, time for work, time for others. You continue to be an inspiration!!
Monday started vacation proper. This is a long-ish one, so my strategy is one I've used in the past... rather than trying to keep to N/S days (when there's no pattern to the week), I allow myself one S-event per day IF it's truly "S-worthy." Something special, not just "oh, I can have a Snickers because it's vacation."
I like the weekly reflection - and noticed that Grammy G does a 21-day reflection. Both are good ideas, and I intend to add them to my thread.June challenge for me:
1) Twenty-one day Vanilla Re-boot to reclaim some habits that have gotten sloppy. I'm on Day 3... and if I keep it up, I can finish just before vacation!
2) Continue increasing pedometer steps (no specific target, just "more")
3) "Mindful eating" practice daily - not all-meals-all-the-time, because that would make me crazy, but at least a part of a meal each day. Even a few bites count.
And I usually don't report here b/c I keep a habitcal, but I'll do a weekly report this time around.
WEEK 1 UPDATE (Friday, June 4)
1. On Day 7 of 21-day "re-boot"
2. Went to a conference last week, and got my walking in at a good level. I got at least 8000/day, up to 12000. Broke 10,000 on M, T, W. (This is much better than I've been doing. Not sure it will continue at this level in the coming week.)
3. Mindful eating - have been doing some each day, and several times have left food on my plate as I realize I'm full!! This one is hard, but self-reinforcing because it results in more enjoyment of my food. The trick is to balance it so that I continue to enjoy doing it, and it doesn't feel like a chore.
Current weight - 147 (My long-term normal is 143-145, but I'd gradually drifted up to 150. My energy/exercise balance had shifted due to lifestyle changes. I'm now addressing that.)
So, a very good week to start off.
Week 2 update (Friday, June 11)
Weight still at 147, but that's okay - I usually bump down in "steps," then it holds for a while.
1) Sticking to vanilla.
2) Walking... broke 10,000 steps on Saturday, Sunday, Tu and Th. Did yoga/pilates on M/W. Nothing on Friday (yet!)
3) Mindful eating... not doing as frequently, so this check-in is a reminder. Though I did leave some lunch twice this week, because I noticed I was full. So, a step forward.
Week 3 update (Friday, June 18 )
Weight is just a hair over 146 - definitely under 147, and the lowest I've seen in months now. (My "normal" is 143-145.)
1) Sticking to vanilla - and I think I've hit my 21 days. Smile Doesn't mean I'm stopping, lol!
2) Walking - broke 10000 only twice this week (Sunday and Thursday), Sad I did do yoga/Pilates/T-Tapp on other days. Still lower than last week, but I am trying! My average is definitely up since beginning the pedometer-wearing.
3) Mindful eating - I totally forgot (doh!!) for a few days, but still hit my minimum because the habit had been set... but could see that without reinforcement, it will go away. Working on it. It IS nice to eat more appreciatively - a fresh peach is AMAZINGLY good. And as a spin-off of eating a bit more mindfully, I have left food on my plate several times. (That is new to me - I have a strong "clean your plate" history. Usually, my portion control is done in advance, by what I put on my plate to begin with; once it's there, I tend to eat it. So, I consider leaving some to be a definite sign of progress.)
My son left part of his dessert last night - one I know he loves. As he left the table, I asked if he wanted the rest of it and he said "No. I know when to stop." I am pleased that he can listen to his body so well. Maybe he won't have to relearn that skill later, as I am doing.
Final report (July 4)
Left on vacation right after my last post. Before I did, I had what I have come to call a "face-down Friday." It includes overeating, but also staying up too late, usually reading or something FOR ME. However, there's an air of "so there!" to it that undermines enjoyment. And I usually feel awful the next day. Looking back on my thread, I realize these happen every three-four weeks... something to think on.
Vacation went well. I did "one S-event a day" and pretty much stuck to it, except toward the end. Some days, I didn't bother having anything... nothing was "S-worthy." And I DID keep a basic 3-meal structure, which I think helped a LOT. I worried that I was overeating because of all the restaurant meals, but my weight this morning was the same as when I left (146 - 146.5). So, that's fine.
However, "mindful eating" needs a re-boot. Why is that so hard to REMEMBER? Will revisit that for July, I think.
I'm happy about weight being back at the normal level. Took a while, but it's nice that I could bring it back in line without panic or extreme measures that would make me crazy.1) Maintain No-S habits (getting back on track after vacation)
2) Work on increasing walking with my pedometer - and tracking that this month
3) Mindful eating - at least a few mouthfuls each meal.
And I do a full check-in on my daily thread, so will just do a weekly recap here like I did last month. That worked well for me.
Weekly report for July 9
1) Was pleased to get back into No-S swing pretty easily.
2) Have three 10,000+ days this week, plus a yoga class. I've started tracking steps on a website, which lets me see them on a graph. May go back and put in any earlier numbers that I have, so I can see progress. It used to be that on a day I walked for exercise, I'd get maybe 8000 steps total, and a day I didn't, I'd get 2-3000. Now, if I walk, I can usually hit 10,000 for the day pretty easily, and when I don't walk, it's 3-5,000. I am pleased with that level of improvement.
3) Doing that more, and liking it. I enjoy food more when I pay attention to it. Still needs attention.
Weight today: 144. That's a loss of 2.5 from when I came back from vacation (last weighed Sunday July 4, right after we returned). Quite a drop for me, but I do tend to lose in "jumps" between which I hold steady for a long time - and of course, there may be normal fluctuation in that too. Still, this puts me back in my "normal" range after my "course correction" earlier this year, so I'm VERY pleased about that. (I'm 5' 7", so 144 is a BMI of 22.6).