kipper

Thank you! I was quite happy with it.

Mr. Kipper was due home on April 22, and I was hoping to have dropped close to 10 pounds by then, figuring that it was another 3 weeks. However, what has me disappointed is that he'll now be home this Friday. Don't get me wrong, I'm happy he'll be home. But, I thought I'd have noticeable weight-loss by the time he came home. Likewise, I figured that I'd have had another 3 weeks to get into the program, and would be far better equipped to tackle spur of the moment dining out and such. Now, I'm almost hyperventilating thinking about going out to dinner for the first time when he's home! I know, I know, think basics... Grilled, skinless chicken, steamed veggies, no butter, no sauces or light on sauces, etc. but still!

It'sHip2B^2

Most people who are trying to lose weight don't engage in many activities that cause great weightloss (i.e. marathoning and the like). So 2-3 lbs lost over a week will reflect actual weightloss. Especially when the general trend is downward.

The general ups and downs of the day are one reason that you should weigh under the same conditions. For example, every WW meeting day I have a bowl of cereal with a banana. About 2 hours after b-fast I will have a glass of soda with my vitamin. Then about an hour later I will take my lunch with me to WW and weigh in. I wear the same shoes every time and similar clothing each season. I won't have drastically different weight since I haven't consumed more than the usual amount of food or lost more than the usual amount of water. You will see the downward trend this way.

People get plenty excited about 2-3 lbs lost. For many dieters they more often see the scale go up. So even a loss of 1 lb is a big deal. Back when I was fat I gained about 1 lb a month. So even in "bad" months when I don't lose any weight, I know that I had at least negated the 1 lb gain that I was living with before. I didn't get fat all at once and I didn't get thin all at once either. Every pound was it's own victory.

It'sHip2B^2

That diet sounds rather bland. You need to spice it up if Mr. K is going to gradually fall in line.

Try this for dinner when he gets home:

1/4 lb fillet mignon (for you, he can have a big one if he likes since he'll get 1000 points anyway)
mix equal amounts of dried rosemary, fennel seed, and dried basil. Add in some salt and pepper to taste. Use herb mixture as a rub for the meat. Grill to your favored temp.

Cube some potatoes (1 med size for you and whatever size Mr. K wants). Spray with pam and use same rub recipe from above. Nuke or grill (in a foil pack) potatoes.

My husband LOVES this recipe. In fact, we had it last night. 1/4 lb fillet + 1 med potato is roughly 6 points for you. It's a very succulent recipe and has been a hit with everyone I've made it for.

Pop in to a WW store some time and buy a few of the cookbooks. They're filled with flavorful food recipes that aren't all that bad for you. I recently found out that my bible study group has no idea I'm serving them WW desserts. One the men in the group goes on and on about how good the food is when it's my turn to cook. What Mr. K doesn't know won't hurt him. Just don't sell him a dinner by saying it is a WW recipe.

kipper

LOL, I'm not too panicked about cooking at home. I have a pretty good grasp on that. It's going out to eat with him that has me panicked!

It'sHip2B^2

I look at the online menu before I go and pick out what I am going to have. That makes it so much easier to make the "right" choice. For instance, tonight I'm either having a taco salad (no tortilla) at Qdoba or a 6 inch turkey sub no cheese at Subway. Tomorrow I'm going to indulge and get both the greek and strawberry salads from The Fresh Market (I might throw in a banana, too).

I've also found that by cooking flavorful meals at home we eat out a lot less. We usually make 4 servings at dinner: two to eat now and two for tomorrow's lunch.

anonplz

Congrats, that's terrific. ^

kokonutz

I eat out a LOT. It's actually not that hard to find healthy choices: stick to the fish and chicken sections, find the dishes with the least sauces (or get them on the side) and most of all: PORTION CONTROL! Figure out how much you would have made at home, only eat that much then STOP. Hard, but do-able! ^

Oh, also send back the bread basket.

SkiAdcock

What he said.

And if you're looking at it as 'panicking' then you're not really looking at it as a long-term healthy change in your eating habits.

Back to the how often do you weigh in thing.

I'm leaving for LAS in the a.m. for a trade show. I'll weigh in tomorrow. I'll also weigh in next Friday upon my return. While eating/drinking will be up, so will walking the convention floor. But there's something about Vegas - being the desert it's so dry that even though I drink a lot of water, my body still doesn't want to give it up & it's the one time I come back from a show w/ swollen ankles/feet/water retention. So I know I'll be up a week from Friday. I also know by the following Monday I'll be back to normal & will weigh in then.

Cheers.

kipper

We often don't decide where we're going until we're out already, and since I don't have a smartphone, I'm a bit stuck there.

That said, I have a general idea about Friday night, so I'm already planning that, along with Saturday's breakfast.

I'm figuring that grilled chicken is probably a good choice without sauce or sauce on the side. I'm not a fish person. Blech!
I'm panicking in part because I figured I'd have more time to "train" myself and "learn" new and healthy behaviors for this change, before Mr. Kipper came back.

That said, it's already worth it--I'm down another 0.4 pounds this morning, and when I did a little happy dance, even the dogs got into it and were jumping and prancing and celebrating with me. We probably looked incredibly silly, but it made me laugh.

Landing Gear

I agree. When I was first told to lose weight, more than five years ago, my internist told me he did not agree at all with me taking my weight twice a day. In the past year, however, he says, "I don't argue with results." My BMI is generally 23 or so because I was lucky enough to be able to take it off and keep it off. (Would like five more pounds, but who wouldn't?)

Regarding scales, most people don't realize that the average bathroom scale can be seriously off. When I thought I had gained weight but found out I had actually lost some, my scale went to the curb for the Sanitation Dept. and I bought the exact same one as in the doctor's office, a Seca, the Mercedes of scales. Now, I generally weigh the same when I go for an exam, give or take a fraction of a pound for any water I drink.

Good luck to all here in your personal goals.

anonplz

I swear to God I am not lying and I am not kidding - this morning, I just got on the scale for the hell of it; then, I had a VERY active day - the weather was sunny and hot, and perfect for getting out and doing stuff, which I did all afternoon; ran into a couple friends, walked all over Manhattan, did calisthenics later, then had a walk, and you know what? My weight is down five pounds JUST FOR TODAY. I actually had to do a doubletake, because I just couldn't believe that.

SkiAdcock

I've had weight go up/down 5lbs in a single day. Usually due to activity or water retention or fill in the blank.

I'm actually up right now but I know that's due to Memorial Weekend stuff. It will drop now that I'm back to normal stuff.

BTW - I do better when I weigh myself on a regular basis.

Cheers.

anonplz

Yeah, it went back up a little, lol.

Oh, well, it's just nice seeing so viscerally how physical activity has an impact on body mass.

fiveninerzero

Consistency. Weigh yourself the same time every time or don't weigh yourself at all. If you do it in the morning, then stick with that. If you weigh right before bed, then roll with that.

TrojanHorse

I use a spreadsheet that tracks my last five days and my last five weigh ins

I use that number

I probably weigh in between 2 and five times a week. I only count the scale at the gym I use at home for consistency purposes.

While I will write down other scales such as the one at work, at hotels, at other gyms, I find too much variation so they go into other columns that are not in the calculation. I basically use these for the eyeball test as to which way I'm going.

the five day-weigh in running averages seem to work for me, no one day fluctuation will really affect me

at the end of each month I list a high/low and monthly avg.

Since this is a travel week, I haven't had many weigh ins.