How much have YOU lost since 1/1/2007?

[PaulaSue]

I need motivation!!!!:goodvibes

Brag away!

[denecarter]

As of this morning... 77 lbs. :cool2:

[DawnM]

Oh my word! In 4 months???? Wow! that is amazing! Share your secrets!

Dawn

As of this morning... 77 lbs. :cool2:

[DawnM]

:sad1: I have only lost 5 pounds!

I have now been researching and have come up with a better plan. Hopefully I will start seeing better results!

Dawn

[bnhasak]

Please share with us your plan?

I have only lost and gained the same 2 pounds since January.

I have lost 20 pounds since starting a year ago, but with 50 more to go....I need help!

[kkmcan]

It's so slow for me but I'm up to 14.4 lost. But.... I've got down 2 sizes and lots of inches. I'm trying to remember that it's not about the pounds. It's how my clothes fit. I feel so much better than I did when I started.

I've come to realize that this is a long journey for me (want to lose 50 pounds) and that's just fine. I don't care how long it takes me. I'm doing it. I tend to lose around 4 pounds a month average. I started Jan. 16th on Weight Watchers.

Good luck and just make up your mind and do it- slow or not!

kelly

[luv2nascar]

31 pounds

[denecarter]

I copied this from the April Weight Loss Challenge thread...
_____________________
First a little background... I'm a 43 yo female with a DD19 who went off to college this year. I also changed jobs from a 1.5 hour commute per day to 0.3 mi to my new school. I was a jock in high school... gained an average 50 lbs per year for 4 years straight beginning 21 years ago. Pretty much stayed the same since. On January 1st of this year, I weighed 330 lbs.

I joined the YMCA and began eating healthy. The Y had a program called "FitStart"... it is a 12 week thing and that is where I meet my trainer. He'd been a competitive body builder in the past and he's a certified trainer. Together, we came up with my "diet" and he continues to encourage and help me with my exercise.

The Jay and Dene' diet:
1) Eat 5-6 times per day.
2) Drink tons of water... like 1.5 gallons per day on average.
3) Carbs only whole grains (when possible)... and usually lunch or earlier.
4) Lean protein... chicken breast, ground turkey, tuna steaks, salmon filets, eggs (I eat the yolk, too).
5) Fresh fruits and vegetables... fruit lunch or earlier and I don't eat starchy veggies like corn or potatoes.
6) Dinner is usually some form of protein and a salad with a tiny bit of extra virgin olive oil (the only time I ever add oil to anything I eat... including cooking) and whatever vinegar I'm in the mood for.
7) No salt shaken onto the food... if salt is in a seasoning blend like Emeril's Essence, that's okay... just no straight salt.
8) Skim milk, fat-free cottage cheese, no sugar added yogurt, and cheeses like Feta and fresh Mozarella (these have 80 cal/oz vs. cheddar at 120 cal/oz).
9) Nuts like almonds, pecans, and walnuts.
10) Mix up the seasonings and make things spicy for flavor and variety.
11) I write down everything I eat/drink (not quantities or calorie counts... just the what). There have been many times that I chose not to eat something because I didn't want to write it down.

Since January 1st, I haven't had anything fried, any potatoes, or any sugar... and I haven't missed them. I was a "bad girl" this past week and weekend and had a strawberry daquari (that's a fruit, right?), a glass and a half of chardonay, and some light beers. But that's another story (hint: it was the first time I've been out socially with friends in a VERY long time).

The Jay and Dene' exercise program:
1) Cardio, cardio, cardio (my challenge minutes are cardio only... no weight lifting counted)... and change it up... vary the incline or speed on the treadmill, I've also moved onto the elliptical, and on Sundays I usually walk 6-12 miles on the bike path and through the park near my house.
2) Go to a variety of classes... yoga, step, cardio challenge, muscleworks... I take what ever is offered... sometimes multiple classes in a day.
3) Lift small amounts of weights several reps... builds lean muscle instead of bulky muscle (he does the bulky stuff). One pound of muscle not only takes up less space than a pound of fat, it burns more calories while working AND at rest than fat.
4) Don't lift the same weights for the same muscles in the same order every time... get a little variety, use the machines one time and the free weights another... just pay attention to your form (ask someone to show you how to do it right if you need to).
5) Keep pushing yourself... stretching (literally and figuratively)... try something new.
6) Find a friend to work out with... you'll feed off of each other's energy... classes are good for that, too. You might just make new friends at the gym itself (that's what I've done ).
7) You gotta be there, you gotta put in the time, you gotta be consistent (with working out, not the what your work out is going to be).
8) Work breeds success... success breeds desire... desire gets you to work more... an UPward spiral.

I totally understand that not everybody can spend as much time at the gym as I do (empty nest, no more commute). It's just a choice I've made and I'm loving it. I'm making friends, becoming more social, becoming more confident (these people see me all the time and notice the changes and they tell me).

Anyway, didn't mean to write a book.. but that's what I've been doing.

[disneychrista]

I have lost 33.2 pounds since 1/1/07

[mikamah]

I have lost 9.4 pounds since january. I've been doing weight watchers since sept 05 and in one year and 8 months have lost 37 total. I have months at a time that I go up and down with the same few pounds, and though it is frustrating, I won't give up. This is my new lifestyle, and if it takes me another 2-3 years to lose the rest of the weight, that's ok. Looking at my averages, I lose about 20 pounds per year. But if I stop trying, I bet I could gain 20 in a few weeks.

Slow and steady will lose and keep it off!!!!

Congratulations everyone!!!!

[IMGONNABE40!]

Dene--that sounds very sensible. No wonder you are doing so well if you are sticking to that diet and exercise routine. One question. Why no added salt? Do you have blood pressure issues?

[denecarter]

Dene--that sounds very sensible. No wonder you are doing so well if you are sticking to that diet and exercise routine. One question. Why no added salt? Do you have blood pressure issues?

Actually, I was putting so much salt on everything I was swelling up like a toad. And my blood pressure was a bit elevated in the past (140s/90s... in March it was 125/80). But mostly it was the edema (sp). I probably lost 20+lbs of water from the reduced salt alone.

[IMGONNABE40!]

Actually, I was putting so much salt on everything I was swelling up like a toad. And my blood pressure was a bit elevated in the past (140s/90s... in March it was 125/80). But mostly it was the edema (sp). I probably lost 20+lbs of water from the reduced salt alone.


Thanks for that info. I am a big salt fan myself. I actually carry salt packets in my wallet! And since I have been trying to cut down on fat, I have been adding seasoned salt and my new fave--Morton's Hot Salt to a lot of my foods. I will have to monitor how I am doing in that regard.

[dabute]

I'm down 23.6 for the year. :cheer2: