I’m back home from my business trip and have slept enough that I should be over much of the jet lag.  I was really looking forward to my weigh in.  I’ve been working really hard on my cardio and have been doing well on my diet.  I hadn’t officially weighed myself since I left three and a half weeks ago, but in my mind, I was looking better and had dropped a lot.

Well, reality sucks…

Three lousy pounds.  I know, I know.  Any loss is good news.  Still, I felt like I had lost more and this is an emotional hit.

But I’m not going to back down.

I have decided that I should keep a food and activity journal.  I’m going to do this for a few reasons:

• I’m not losing weight as fast as I thought I should.  Perhaps I’m eating more than I realize.  I need some data to help me evaluate.
• I’m going to ween myself off of caffeine.  Logging my caffeine intake will help me monitor that.
• I want to start stepping up my physical activity.  The journal will let me set benchmarks to push myself against.

Onward…

I’m not talking about the store (I’m over twice as old as anyone that should be wearing those clothes is).  I’m talking about a gap in my weigh-ins.  Even though I’m posting this on Sunday, I actually did this weigh in on July 3rd.

Down yet another pound since my last weigh in on Sunday (and this was really just half a week).  Not too shabby, huh?

Yes, this was an off-cycle weigh in.  Why?  And what is all this “Gap” stuff?

I’m traveling in SE Asia this month and actually won’t be returning home until August 2nd.  I’ll be going a month between weigh-ins, which is actually a bit scary.

I know I could use a scale here (or I could have brought my scale from home), but I want to try going without the training wheels for a bit.  I still know what I want and that comes more from look and feel than what the scale tells me anyhow.

So, the plan for the month (yes, I’ll be answerable to you, so there will still be regular posts):

- Eat sensibly (order good food and don’t feel compelled to finish the plate)

- Snack regularly with fruits and nuts to keep my metabolism going.

- No alcohol.  I might treat myself to a chocolate every now and then (can you say turn down service?).

- At least five hours of cardio work per week (break that into five to seven workouts, mostly in the morning on an empty stomach).

- Resume the push up challenge at week two.

- Begin working back, biceps, shoulders and abs in two to three high rep/short rest workouts per week.  Along the push ups (chest and triceps) this should begin to tone the muscles I’ve buried in fat and set up a platform for me to begin to build muscle mass after I break 200 lbs (going down of course).

I’m almost looking at this trip as an fitness boot camp.  When I’m not working, I plan to be active.  No hanging around the hotel room.  This hotel, which is where I’ll be for most of my stay has an excellent fitness center and the breakfast buffet has a lot of good choices (and many bad ones).  I’m in a good place, physically and mentally.  Let’s go!

Well, I didn’t lose much this week (just half a pound), but then I did enjoy myself at some of Louisiana’s finer establishments.  Hole in the wall Cajun restaurants are the best (unless you’re trying to lose weight).

I also didn’t work out as heavily as I could have.  I let my push up challenge workouts fall out.  I’ll get back on it tomorrow morning.

I am at a total of 15 lbs lost.  I’m on target for my year long journey.  So, all is good in the world!

I will be weighing in on Thursday morning since I’m going out of town.  The dangerous part of this is that I’ll be traveling for a full month.  Keeping focus during that time will be challenging, which is a main theme of this blog.  We will persevere!

Back on track that is! My weigh in this week has me down to a new low (at least for this challenge). I am so glad that I got these results. I was very disappointed with my results last week and I pushed myself a bit harder this week. If anything, I thought I’d lose more, but I won’t complain.

Much of this week happened due to my exercise. As you can see from my previous post, I started the 100 pushup challenge. So three times this week, I was in the “front leaning rest” for some fun fun. I did the top tier workout for week one. Each workout escalates a good bit from the prior one, so I’m sure I’m going to find a sticking point fairly soon. But I’ll keep at it.

I also spent a good bit of time on my Wii Fit. I’ve opened most of the balance sets. For some reason I still suck at the ski jump. If you know the trick, please let me in on it. This week, I introduced a couple of yoga exercises. Apparently I’m very good at breathing. Good thing as I’ve had over 42 years of practicing.

This week has me on the road. I’ll be driving through Louisiana for work. That means hotels, driving, and several opportunities to partake in some of the best food on Earth! That said, I’m still going to target another pound this week. I want to have the “I lost 15 lbs” in my repertoire. Sounds good, doesn’t it? And that puts me on track for another Mardi Gras!

Well, lets just call a duck a duck.  Yes, I did a great deal of walking while in DC, but to be frank, I didn’t really watch what I was eating, or drinking.  The results speak for themselves.  I put on three pounds.  I am not happy about that to say the least.

But, I am committed to turn this around.  Today is a new day.  I’ve started on the right foot, watching my eating, timing out my meals, etc.  I’m also committing hold my Mardi Gras captive until I get below 215 lbs (basically, a ten pound drop).   It might take me a month to get there, but I will.

Thanks to all of you who have offered support!  It really means a lot to me!  Onward!

One and a half pounds lost this week was a welcome sight.  I faced some big challenges to my program.  I have had a bad gold and as a result didn’t go to the gym.  I also had to take a road trip with my daughter for a band thing.  We also had our neighbors over for dinner to thank them for their help.

Generally, I was able to keep my eating in check this week, which is what made the difference.  I did partake of alcohol, but nothing too massive.

My cold is finally winding down, so I should be able to get in the gym a few days early this week.  I am taking my daughter to Washington, DC on Wednesday (parlaying a business trip).  That should mean a lot of walking.  I just need to keep my eating in control and it should be a good week.

By all accounts, a one and a half pound loss week should be a good one.  But I can’t help but be a bit disappointed.  I really worked hard.  I guess I shouldn’t complain.

Working out in the higher altitude was harder.  Since I had a higher heart rate, I wasn’t able to go as fast on the eliptical.  As a result, I showed a lower calorie burn for the time worked.  I hope that the workouts did improve my fitness even though it shows a lower calorie expenditure.

The high altitude also affected my sleeping.  I slept, but I didn’t wake feeling rested.  When I got home yesterday, I went straight to bed and slept for 13 hours.  I also slept well last night (9 hours).  I feel much better today.

While I was in Ecuador, I was pretty good about my eating and alcohol comsumption until my last day.  The group went out for lunch at a very nice Argentine restaurant.  I spent the rest of the evening relaxing in the bar (yes, big mistake).  For the time being, I’m not going to abstain from alcohol, but will work to control my consumption.  I may have to rethink that to reach my goal, but right now I’m losing at the rate I want to and I don’t see a reason to punish myself. 

I am again facing a travel week, leaving for Orlando on Monday, returning on Saturday.  My strategy is as follows:

• Bring food with me (protien bars, almonds, etc.)
• Stop by a market and get some apples, milk and water.
• Continue my cardio workouts in the hotel fitness center or in a local gym with a day pass. 
• I’m going to up my workouts to 90 minutes a day.
• Make good choices at dinner (avoiding breads and fried food).
• Avoid bars and limit alcohol with dinners.

I’m well on my way with my weight loss and fitness challenge.  A little over a month and I’ve lost 8 1/2 pounds.  I know these first pounds are the easiest.  But I feel like I have traction.  I’m more driven now than I was when I started!

Onward!

I did my weigh in on Saturday morning rather than the regular Sunday morning due to my travel schedule.  It was a good weigh in that has me down another pound and a half.  That brings me down by six pounds in the first month.  Not a bad start.  Thirty-four more to go!

Other successes:  I went out for dinner Thursday night and while I selected foods that weren’t the best for me, I stopped at half a plate.  Overall I worked out five of six days.

Failures:  Beer, wine (but then it was in honor of Robert Mondavi’s passing) and some fried foods.

This week I’m traveling, so I’ll have to be careful not to go too far overboard and keep my workouts going.  The hotel has a gym, and I went by the market to pick up some water and nuts and fruit.  I also brought a few protein bars.

I would be lying if I said I wasn’t surprised to have lost a pound and a half this week. Yes, I had a plan when I went on my business trip (taking food with me, etc.), but I met a friend out one night (Champps) and had drinks and dinner with a co-worker and her boyfriend (Lupes). I also didn’t get any workouts in from Tuesday through Friday. I figured I had really screwed the pooch this week.

I did better with my eating on Friday and Saturday and spent an hour on the elliptical on Saturday. I am pleasantly surprise. Nothing Fits also had a good weigh in! I’m sure she’ll be posting soon.

Well, there it is…  Damn it.  I gained a pound this week.  Which really surprises me.

I lifted weights four days and did one fat burning session (45 minutes) on the elliptical.  The only bad day, from a diet perspective was on Saturday when I had some fried food for dinner.  I really can’t explain it.

I’m disappointed, but still down two pounds total from when I started on this weight loss challenge.  So, I’m not off plan yet.  I pushed myself a bit harder on my leg workout today.  I know harder isn’t better, but I wasn’t feeling too good about myself so I wanted to express that.

My biggest concern is my travel this week.  I’m off to Houston.  It is a driving trip, so I can take more with me (workout clothes, better food, etc.).  So, maybe I can still persevere.