Becky's Weight Loss Journal

[becky_AK]

Hi everyone~
Well, I am getting super serious about my weight loss and am looking to my friends here at DIS for support.

Let me tell you a little bit about myself~
I am 25 (very close to 26). I've been married for almost 6 years to my college sweetheart and have a 4 month old son. I love being a mom and am really enjoying my new role in life.

I come from a huge Disney family...everyone from Aunts & Uncles, my parents, siblings, etc. love Disney. We used to take multiple trips each year to Disneyland growing up and have now decided that we enjoy WDW better & take an annual family trip each October/November. My husband & I are looking forward to sharing Disney with our son...we are celebrating his 1st birthday there in November

I played basketball in college & have always been very athletic. I played varsity volleyball, softball and basketball throughout highschool and state championship teams and was offered scholarships to play all three sports in college.

The road to weight gain~
I got pregnant in February 2006. It wasn't planned & I was a bit shocked at first, but very happy. I have always watched my weight and been an athlete but the thought of being pregnant & gaining weight really scared me. I have a lot of history of obestity and diabetes in my family & I've always worried that I was going to end up that way too. Well, after about a month of eating really healthy during my pregnancy I had an emotional breakdown and said "screw it." Long story short, after many trips to Mickey D's and Kit Kat candy bars I gained almost 90 pounds during my pregnancy!

Well, 4 months later I still have about 65-70 pounds to lose and I'm frustrated and don't even know what to do. I work out daily, have tried monitoring most of the food I eat and I just am getting irritated with the SLOW results.

I need to stay motivated & understand that it took me 9 months to gain the weight and I can't expect to lose it overnight. We are planning our trip in Oct/Nov. and I want to be able to wear my tank tops, shorts, bathing suit and feel good about myself again.

SO....that's why I've decided to start a journal. Everyday I plan on writing down my goals, exercise, food, etc. Please feel free to add any advice, words of encouragement, etc. Maybe we can help eachother through out weight struggles and live a happy, healthy, long life...so that we can enjoy Disney right?!?!?

Have a wonderful day & I look forward to meeting all of you.

~Becky

 

[LMO429]

Hi

Here are some things that have helped me!!!!

1. TURBO JAM DVD workouts!!!!! They are excellent!!!! Im a gym regular and when I cant make it to the gym i pop one of the dvds in and get a great workout...I recently had a partial thyroidectomy and my metabolism is that of a 90 yr old woman now and im only 31. but these dvds def have helped me lose weight and they are super fun!!! and sooo not boring.

2. another great set of workout dvds that you can do at home are a called THE FIRM...also excellent...remember in order to lose weight you need muscle...the more muscle you have the more fat you will burn. dont be afraid of weights!!!!

3. Writing down everything i eat in a food journal.

4. This is a little bit expensive but it was great in kickstarting me to lose weight quickly in the beginning...If available by you try Zone chef delivery...its about 200 dollars a week for a full week of food and snacks..the food is DELICIOUS!!!! you dont have to prepare anything and you will LOSE weight...i lost 8 pounds in one month

5. This one i hate but it keeps you in check...WEIGHT YOURSELF NO MATTER WHAT ONCE and ONLY ONCE THE SAME TIME EACH WEEK.. this will be the best indication of your progess and will also let you know if you are slipping and or cheating on your diet....i know many people say dont use the scale throw it out judge by your clothes but trust me the scale doesnt ever lie!!!! also take your measurements once a month...although you may of not lost weight you may have lost a bunch of inches.

6. lose the all of none attitude ( i have trouble with this one myself im working on it) and allow yourself to cheat once in awhile

good luck you will do it...

 

[becky_AK]

Thanks for writing. I'm going to check out some of those videos you suggested.

I am also thinking about making an appointment with a nutritionist and my doctor to check my thyroid. I have been working out nonstop and am not losing any weight. I could just be impatient, but I know from the past I do lose weight very slowly.

I have also decided that I am going to do a weigh-in every Saturday morning. I will weigh myself the same time every Saturday so that I can start to see results which are accurate.

I'm very excited about seeing how far I can go & I really hope to reach all of my goals and be successful. Now if I can just get my husband to be supportive and stop having junk food around the house all the time

 

[LMO429]

if you are the one that does the shopping you can get your husband the same junk food but in low calorie or low fat versions...but you should keep from eating this stuff to a minimum..even though it says low fat the manufactor usually make up for it with SUGAR....and sugar turns to FAT.....so that is why stay away!!! (sometimes ).... plus you will probably be surprise if you buy some fruit and healthy stuff in the house your husband will have no choice but to eat it when he is mindlessly muching away. Personally i try not to leave junk food in my house and when im at my boyfriend apt we dont have much there either..

the turbo jam dvds can be found on the beachbody website and the firm dvds are on the firmdirect website....plus usually everyweekend and late at night you can see the informercials on tv.

 

[tbstein]

I am also thinking about making an appointment with a nutritionist and my doctor to check my thyroid.
Now if I can just get my husband to be supportive and stop having junk food around the house all the time

Becky, I can understand this. After my first child, I lost all but 5 pounds. Then I started to feel yuky, tired, etc. Started to gain weight, and have equilibrium problems. After going to my doctors for 18 months, I had gained 60 pounds and we finally discovered that I have what is called Empty-cella symdrom. An ENT I went to discovered it because they couldn't find why I was have such equilibruim problems. Well, this is basically an abnomality in the area surrounding the pituatary gland. So, from there we discovered I had a throid problem. It just doesn't work. Not enough of the thyroid stimulating hormone. So, eliminated all my other symptoms, but never really lost weight. Then I had my DD, and never really lost the weight from having her. (and I only gained 27 pounds during pregnacy). So, to make a long story way shorter, I finally went to a bone specialist because of hip pain, and found out I have a leg longer than the other, I have fibromyalgia, and a mild gluten allergy. That was last February. Since changing my diet, improving my ability to move in general, and improving my over all health and exercise is now an option I can indulge in, I have lost 45 pounds. I still have 30 more to go. Even tho it took forever, finding the right doctor and the underlying cause to poor health, I am so much healthier. I really encourage you to see both a nutrionist and your doctor. As you mentioned, there is some history in your family. Besides, it is always good to have that peace of mind of eliminating any issues.

Well, now that I have babbled enough for 2 people today, I will say Great losses to you! Hope they are many and in all the right places!

Good luck!

Wendy

 

[kimwim8]

Hi Becky! Welcome to WISH journals!!

I also went to a nutritionist and she was WONDERFUL in helping me learn all about foods and what is good and what is bad. It's also helped me a LOT in preparing food for my family. Including the snacks we keep in the house. Once I started seeing results with the nutritionist, it really didn't bother me to have some junk food around (the kids were trained that they had to have mostly healthy snacks and one junk-food snack per day). I didn't want to eat the junk because I wanted to continue to see the scale go down.

Remember to get lots of water in every day. It really does help in the weight loss process. The nutritionist can also tell you what the maximum amount of water for you per day should be - personally I went over that a little, but it's good to know since too much water can cause other health problems.

Ok, enough from me today. I also have a WISH journal, which has become quite long....but if you wanted to read about my experiences with the nutritionist, start from the beginning. I had lost almost 30 pounds in 3 months by following her eating plan and (about a month into it) following a running plan that took me from walk/running to running 3 miles straight.

Take care, and keep on journaling! I'll be here cheering you on!

 

[becky_AK]

Wendy & Kim,
Thank you for letting me know about your experiences. I always enjoy hearing from others who have or are in similar situations. It kind of helps me to remember that if other's can overcome their obstacles, I can too.

This morning I got up at 8am and went to the gym. I did an aqua fit class. It is so much fun working out in the pool, I love it. I think I'm going to try & do this every Saturday from now on. One of my coworkers has been going to the class, so it nice to have someone there that I know.

I came home and had a boiled egg for a snack. Went with DH and DS to run some errands and came back home to have lunch. We had a tuna sandwich and water for lunch. So far I feel pretty good today & even have enough energy that I might try to go back to the gym tonight for a 30-45 minute workout on the elliptical machine.

I kept thinking about how proud I was that I woke up this morning to go to the gym and while I was in class the instructor told us to keep pushing ourselves and work as hard as we could. She said to visualize our goals and picture the reason why we are in class early on a Saturday morning. Wanna know what I pictured? Me walking in the Magic Kingdom skinny again & wearing a cute pair of shorts showing off my great legs and a tank top with tanned, toned arms. Kinda funny that my mind wandered to WDW while I was huffing & puffing during a workout haha.

Have a great Saturday & thanks for your support!!

 

[Jaime]

hi...

I wish you all the best with your weight loss and I bet you'll look great when you go to mk.

At my highest I was 246.5...I have currently lost 75.5 pounds. I found that using Canada's food guide really helps me and when ever I want to loose more weight I try to follow it actually with healthy foods (skim milk...whole wheat grains...lean protiens...etc..) It seems like I am eating so much food when I follow it but I usually will loose 2 pounds a week! If you wanted to have a look at the site it is http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/fn-an/food-guide-aliment/index_e.html. Best of luck!

 

[becky_AK]

Today is the beginning of the week (I consider Sunday the 1st day, some consider Monddays). Anyway, I woke up this morning and weighed myself and decided that this will be the day that I weight myself every week. I can't believe I am going to post this on here....but I weighed 218. This is 2 pounds lighter then last week, but still about 70 pounds heavier then I was before getting pregnant. Yikes!

I am so sore this morning. I went to water aerobics yesterday & today my calves are in so much pain. I didn't think I worked out that hard, but I guess it is hard to determine how hard you are working when you are in the pool. I'm hoping that I'm not so sore tomorrow because I'm planning on going to kickboxing tomorrow night for about an hour.

It is also my goal this week to go to the gym Monday, Wednesday & Friday from 5:30-6:30am to get in 60 minutes of cardio before work. It is so hard for me to wake up in the morning, but this week I am setting my alarm clock and pulling my butt out of bed.

The rest of my workout schedule for the week is as follows: (I figure if I post it online I have to be accountable for actually doing the workouts... )

Monday:
5:30-6:30am 60 min. cardio
7pm-8pm Kickboxing

Tuesday:
6-7pm Water aerobics

Wednesday:
5:30-6:30am 60 min. cardio
7-8pm Kickboxing

Thursday:
6-7pm Water aerobics

Friday:
5:30-6:30 60 min. cardio
5:45-6:45 Step Aerobics

Saturday:
9am-10am water aerobics
10-11 60 min. cardio

Sunday:
Weekly weigh in

Wish me luck this week as I start my am workout and most importantly, I am going to write down everything I eat and really start trying to improve my nutrition and make healthier food choices.

Have a great week to everyone who reads this, and here I go.....

 

[becky_AK]

hi...

I wish you all the best with your weight loss and I bet you'll look great when you go to mk.

At my highest I was 246.5...I have currently lost 75.5 pounds. I found that using Canada's food guide really helps me and when ever I want to loose more weight I try to follow it actually with healthy foods (skim milk...whole wheat grains...lean protiens...etc..) It seems like I am eating so much food when I follow it but I usually will loose 2 pounds a week! If you wanted to have a look at the site it is http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/fn-an/food-guide-aliment/index_e.html. Best of luck!

Jaime-
Thank you for sending me the link to the Canada food guide. I'm going to check it out right now My goal this week is to improve my food choices, so whatever plan I can find that provides me with healthy food and lots of it, I'm all for that...haha.

Thanks again & have a great week.

 

[kimwim8]

Good luck Becky!! That sounds like a doozy of a workout week, but you can do it!! You've got the flow goin'!! Anyone that wants to wake up early to work out is in "the zone".

 

[JerseyBallerina]

I just wanted to wish you luck on your weight loss and to tell you how I'm impressed I am that you're getting up so early! I could never get up before 6 am, especially to work out so I just wanted to commend you for your good work! Keep it up!

 

[tbstein]

Hi!

Just thought I would stop by and and say have a great week!

Wendy

 

[becky_AK]

Wendy-thanks for stopping by to say hello. I appreciate all of the support.

I'll post my journal entry this evening when I get home from work

 

[becky_AK]

Yesterday (Monday 3/26) was not the day I had hoped it would be. I did get up and go workout in the morning, which was a big deal for me since I have such a hard time pulling my lazy butt out of bed in the mornings. I didn't make it to the gym last night though because my legs were so sore, I thought it would be wise to take the evening off and rest a little bit before I go to water aerobics tonight.

I had started out the day with a banana and a bowl of corn flakes. That wasn't so bad. At lunch time my husband came and picked me up & asked if I wanted to have a quick lunch with him. I obviously should've said "no" because where did we go...Carls Jr....not exactly a healthy place. I had a chicken sandwich & substituted the fries for a salad (which I have for lunch today) and a med. Diet Coke. Last night I had a burrito for dinner that we made and it consisted of some rice, beans, chicken, cheese & salsa. I guess overall I didn't eat a huge consumption of food, but I was disappointed because I had planned on having my bowl of ceral & banana for breakfast and then a salad for lunch and dinner.

Trying to figure out my diet is definitely the hardest thing I am dealing with. I have the exercise thing down...I actually love to go to the gym, so that isn't really a problem. Finding time to go to the gym is hard sometimes, but I still enjoy working out, so that is actually about the only thing DH and I do for fun other then an occasional movie or dinner out.

I guess I'm just venting and feeling a little down on myself today because I have been going to the gym like a maniac and I haven't lost any weight and my jeans aren't even getting looser. *Sigh* I feel blessed everyday for having my son but I really think that pregnancy took a toll on my body and I'm starting to wonder if I'll ever be able to lose all this weight that I gained.

I'm not going to give up though. Today I started out with my banana & ceral and will eat my salad for lunch. My exercise today is water aerobics from 6-7.
I'm not sure what we are doing for dinner tonight. Several members of my family drove up today from Idaho so I have a feeling tonight we will be dining out. Hopefully we go somewhere where I can make a healthy dinner selection

Hope every one has a wonderful Tuesday & I'll report back either this evening or tomorrow morning.

 

[LMO429]

Becky

You can and will do it!!!!! Just stay positive.....just because you ate at carl jrs yesterday for lunch doesnt mean you blew it!!!..in fact bravo you subsituted the fries for a salad!!! Dont considered what you are doing right now a diet think about it as a NEW WAY OF LIFE or a lifestyle change..that being said there are going to be days where you are not going to be perfect!!!! also dont beat yourself up about the fact you didnt work out "AGAIN" last night...its unrealistic to think you are going to work out 2 hours a day 3 to four days a week for the rest of your life...in fact IMPO its TOO MUCH!!! You are just starting out anywhere from 30 min to an hour a day is more than enough...the water training is great also because that is resistance training...remeber you need to build MUSCLE in order to lose fat!!!! and dont get down on yourself that you have not lost weight yet...in fact you may be gaining muscle and thats a good thing!!!!!! thats what you want to do...when i first started working out myself i had the same frustrations i was killing myself at the gym and not losing any weight i guarantee you, you will lose the weight just stick with it...it took me a couple of weeks to lose weight myself but once my good habits kicked in the weight started to come off.

remember you should aim to only losing a pound or two a week at most!!!!

 

[CACruisin']

Welcome to WISH journals You are off to great start! I applaud you with making time for exercise. That is still the hardest thing for me and my "baby" is nearly 4!

I know it is frustrating to have the weight come off slowly, but it really is the healthiest way and weight will stay off for good too. You also have your age in your favor. The weight will come off - just keep at it. You said you were going to journal your food. That is a great idea. One thing that helps me was to enter my daily food into www.fitday.com. Other people have used sparkpeople (sp?). It allows me to see where I may be eating too much (fat or carbs) or not enough (protein or calories). Make sure you are eating enough each day too. If your calories are too low your body will go into starvation mode and hang onto every darn fat cell there is . Try and eat a couple of healthy snacks. It really helps keep your metabolism/sugar/energy level. Finally, as Kim said, make sure to drink lots of water. There is something to be said for "flushing" away the weight .

Again, welcome to WISH and enjoy the journey!

 

[becky_AK]

Thank you everyone for the support I was definitely feeling down on myself this morning. It is frustrating not to have weight loss when you feel like you are working so hard, but you are all right about gaining muscle. At least I feel stronger and I do feel better about myself. I know that with time the weight will come off, I guess I am just a little impatient right now since spring is right around the corner

Thank you & have an awesome day!!

 

[kimwim8]

Hey Becky. I totally agree with the other posters. Your meal out was definitely not a "bad" meal. You knew what the healthy options were, and you chose them.

One thing I want to suggest, is that if you are planning on having salads for lunch & dinner...make sure to incorporate a protein in with them. Chicken, fish, turkey, yogurt, etc. Protein is what your body needs in order to keep your metabolism going...so make sure you're getting 3 servings of protein a day. You can even have more if you're working out as much as you are. If you work out in the am & have a protein afterwards, your metabolism is gonna burn & burn & burn!! Also, make sure to get enough water in to stay hydrated!!

Keep up the great work!

 

[becky_AK]

As always, thank you to everyone who has provided comments & support in my quest to lose all this baby weight It is much appreciated.

Kim-Thank you for telling me about the protein. I learned something new today I never realized that you have to have certain amounts of protein in order to burn fat...WOW, I feel smart now that I know that...hehe.

CACrusin'-Thank you for the link to fitday.com. I think I'm going to create a profile there to keep track of my food intake.

LMO429-What? I'm not perfect J/K That is actually something that I do need to work on though because I am a perfectionist and I have a hard time when things don't go my way or I can't meet my personal expectations.

What I've learned so far this week is that nutrition is definitely the area that I need to learn more information about. I've never watched what I ate in the past & never worried about my weight. After having a baby and seeing many of the health risks that are prevalent in my family, I want to make a lifestyle change & not just a quick diet to lose the weight. I want to be around to see my son grow up, his kids, and so forth. I am young & there is no excuse for me not being healthy & active.

I've talked one of my coworkers into going for walks with me now, so 2x a day we take walks around the college campus we work at. It is very nice to have someone to walk & talk with a couple times a day & I'm so happy that she has agreed to do this with me

Well, must run, but will report tonight or tomorrow after my water aerobics class.