Vacation Plan

I think mom and I have settled on a Thursday night WW meeting for now.  I think this will be a great change of pace for the summer, but I will miss my current leader for sure!  I'm sure we'll still show up on Sundays now and then just to check in with Suzie!  I will be keeping the blog post on Sundays for now so be sure to check back each week to see how I'm doing (if that sort of thing interests you).

I'm a little disappointed to report I did not win the DietBet.  Turns out 4% was more than my body was willing to shed for this 4 week period.  I lost about 3% overall.  Even though I didn't win, I do feel great about the progress I made during the bet.  I really stuck with my eating plan and amped up my activity! I don't think I'll do another DietBet just yet, maybe I'll pick one for August.

This coming week will be a challenge for me.  I will be in SanAntonio Sunday through Wednesday for a conference.  It is kind of my only vacation for summer, so I don't want to make things too tough on myself.  At the same time, I don't want to come back having gained 10 lbs!  There will be a lot of opportunity to eat and drink more points than usual.  I will be doing a lot of walking, but also a lot of sitting.  I'd love to maintain my current weight for the next week, but I'd even be ok to just be up a couple of pounds.  So, I'm making a plan, in hopes that I will be able to stick with it!

Vacation Plan

• Eating/Drinking
• Breakfast - Coffee & something with protein (no sweets)
• Lunch - Salad if possible or a sandwich
• Snack - Fruit or vegetable or yogurt if possible
• Dinner - keep it reasonable, order fish or grilled chicken with vegetables (AVOID CHIPS & SALSA)
• Drink lots of water
• Pick 2 nights to enjoy alcoholic beverages (reasonably) 
• Activity - 
• Walk to and from conference center (.5 miles each way)
• Walk as much as possible between conference sessions
• Take the stairs instead of escalator or elevator when possible
• Walk to lunch 
• Walk to dinner
• One 3 mile walk on one evening
• Try to average 75% or better on my ActiveLink
• Other
• Wear ActiveLink every day
• Pack workout wear and shoes
• Pack swimsuit
• No tracking if I stick to this plan, if I splurge I will track it
• Weigh in next Thursday night even if I'm afraid to see the results

 -30.4 lbs!

Summer Challenge Updates

It's only been a couple of weeks since I started some new challenges for summer, but I thought an update post would be good.

Challenge #1: 30-day AB Challenge

Today is day 16, but I am 3 days behind on this challenge. It is getting pretty tough, but I'm trying to stay determined.  I don't have the strength to do them all in one go, so I am trying to do half before my walk and the rest after.  I figure it counts as long as I get the required number of reps in! :-)

Challenge #2: New 12-Week ActiveLink Challenge

I really pushed myself during my new assessment week.  I wanted the new challenge to reflect the changes I've made over the last several weeks. I have to say this is probably my best week of activity yet.  I earned 25 activity points for the week.  Fantastic!  This includes going to the gym for 3 strength training workouts and going for a 3 mile walk on most nights.

In January when I did my first assessment week, I ranked in the "towards activity base line" and my challenge was to try to get to 3 activity points per day by the end of 12 weeks.  I'm excited by my new results!  I'm now earning about 4 activity points per day.  My challenge is to earn 6 activity points per day by the end of 12 weeks.  

I think this challenge will really keep me moving this summer!  I plan to do strength training 4 days per week and walk/run 3 miles 5 days per week.  That should get me to the 6 points + per day range!

Challenge #3: Running (kind of)

I've been running short distances along my walking trail.  I don't have the endurance to run much, but I like to set little visual goals as I walk.  I tell myself I'll run to the next light post or fire hydrant.  I push myself hard during the first mile, then I take it a bit more easy for the next 2.  I'm using the RunKeeper app to keep track of my progress.  I love that it keeps track of my personal bests.  Here they are so far:

I can't believe I actually had a best average pace of 14:09 per mile!  That's 2 minutes faster than my goal of 16:00 per mile! I'm obviously not hitting that rate consistently, but with that as a new target I will continue to push myself.

Challenge #4: Diet Bet

This is the last week of the Diet Bet, and I have 3lbs to lose to reach my 4% goal.  I'm hopeful, but know the scale doesn't always budge that much in a week.  I'm proud of my progress over the 4 week diet bet even if I don't finish as a winner though!  Every pound lost is a victory!  Don't believe me... check this out! 

In Other News:

I'm trying out some different WW meeting times for summer.  I'm hoping to find a Wednesday or Thursday night meeting that I like.  That will give me a bit more flexibility in my weekend meals.  Weighing in on Sunday has been good, but I'm wanting to be able to enjoy some Friday or Saturday splurge meals instead of feeling so limited on those nights.  Since I'm switching meeting times, there will be no photo and scale update for this blog post.  I'm going to keep the blog on Sundays, but will have to wait til next week for my next scale update!  Stay tuned!

Saying No To Social Events

There have been a lot of opportunities in my life lately to eat and drink.  For the last 2 weeks it seems every time I turn around someone is inviting me to a party or happy hour or something.  As much as I love social events, lately I've been saying no to a lot of them.  I think the people in my life understand why, but I still feel bad for saying no so much.

Right now it is just too hard to stay in control in those environments.  Yes, I have some coping strategies.  And yes, it is possible to stay on plan and still attend those events.  However, it is easier to stay on track without all of those temptations staring at me.

Sometimes I feel so angry that I live in a place that is basically trying to make me fat.  Don't get me wrong... I am happy to be an American and I am SO thankful for the freedoms we have.  But the more I read about healthy habits and nutrition, the more I see how our culture/society is set up to basically help us avoid them all together.  The worst food for you is the cheapest and most readily available.  Combine that with our jobs that are more and more sedentary and the amount of time we spend just sitting in our cars driving from place to place, and you've got a recipe for obesity.   It really makes me mad, that the world around me is set up to help me fail instead of succeed.  Is success still possible?  OF COURSE IT IS!  But it would be a heck of a lot easier if the world weren't out to get me!

 -30.8 lbs (hit another 5lb milestone!)

New Challenges

To go along with the Diet Bet I joined, I've decided to amp up my activity for summer and start 3 additional challenges.  I think these challenges will keep me on track as my schedule becomes less structured due to summer break.

Challenge #1: 30-day AB Challenge
I saw this posted on Facebook a couple of weeks ago.  I think abs are the one muscle group you really can't overdo when it comes to toning up, so I've decided to give this challenge a try.  I printed it out and stuck it to my fridge.  Each day of June I intend to add the indicated ab workout to my already consistent strength training.  The first week of the challenge seems so simple... but I know around the middle of week 2 things will get a bit tougher.  I will complete each days challenge even if I have to spread it out on the tougher days!

Challenge #2: New 12-Week ActiveLink Challenge (following a new assessment)

Since completing my last ActiveLink challenge, I have been working hard to maintain my goal of earning at least 3 activity points per day.  I've really amped up my activity over the past few months.  It is such a change from where I started in January!  Rather than just choose a new challenge, I really wanted a chance to redo the assessment so I could compare my results.  My assessment week starts tomorrow.  For the next 7 days ActiveLink will monitor my activity then create a new challenge for me based on the results.  

Challenge #3: Running (kind of)

I am NOT a runner.  I'm not sure I ever will be (or even want to be for that matter).  I don't enjoy it, and I don't have the stamina to do very much of it.  I understand there is some debate over benefits of running vs. walking.   I'm not here to argue one side or the other.  I'm just looking to push my body a little more than I have been.  I typically walk 3 miles in an hour (roughly 20 minutes per mile).  At that pace I can easily walk for 6 miles without tiring out, given I have the time for such.  For this challenge, I am simply going to incorporate short (very short) runs throughout my walk. My goal is to shave about 4 minutes off my average mile time.  I'll be using Run Keeper on my walks to help me keep track of my progress in this area.  I'm sure the summer heat will eventually drive me indoors to the treadmill, but for now I am trying to do an outdoor walk 4 days/week. 

 -28.0 lbs 

(up another .4 this week due to celebrating a friend's bday the night before weigh in)