'BoutThatActionBoss

Thank you! Trying to get the Ws where I can and not to overwhelm myself with goals either. It's a constant exercise of discernment, if that makes sense.

Not a great week for me. It wasn't terrible, but it wasn't great. I weighed the exact same I did last week, which was not surprising. I did not do great with my portions, and I did indulge in a few too many high calorie foods. So it wasn't a great week, but it wasn't a total loss either. Let's do a quick goal update: 1) Finish the C25K program and run my race in mid March, then start training for my half marathon in May I finished the program yesterday! I have a 5 mile race in March and am slowly building up toward it. So I am feeling good regarding my exercise. I've also been able to continue with a bodyweight/kettlebell routine so I feel good in that way. 2) Track my calories every day until the end of the challenge in MyFitnessPal to lose three pounds The calorie tracking was good, but I feel like I missed a few things and I wasn't as assiduous as usual. Still, I've been trying to track since January so I can say I am in the habit at the very least, and that counts for something. 3) Stay away from ice cream and fried foods until the end of the challenge. At the beginning of this current challenge, I was a bit off the rails with these foods but I've been able to wrest control the last 10 days so I am on a good streak now. It's almost Lent, and during Lent I usually only drink water and completely stay away from sweets and fried foods so I usually lose weight by Easter. I hope that can happen again. 4) Sleep 7 hours a night on work days I've been getting a decent amount of sleep. Although the other night when the Russia invasion happened, I stayed up late watching CNN (those poor people!). But otherwise the sleep has been decent. 5) Join a beginner hockey league I bought skates and a helmet and was stoked to play for a league, but it turns out the league doesn't have enough beginners to run so that is disappointing. But I signed up for skating lessons and found a nearby pickup league for beginners so I will do that as soon as I finish gathering up the necessary equipment. Non-fitness goals: 1) Read Hamlet by the end of the challenge Still working on it! I mean, I have read one page of it. I just need to sit down and bang it out in the next week or so. 2) Work on my side hustle for four hours total Haven't done that yet! I work two jobs and would love to replace one of them which is lower paying, with a higher paying side hustle. I need to make moves here. I hope everyone else is having a great week!

Not a great weigh-in for me. Didn't lose anything at all, but I know I didn't have a great week so I am not that surprised. I didn't have a bad week, but I definitely didn't eat at the deficit I should have. Fingers crossed I can get more momentum this week. Happy Friday everyone!

I believe so, yes! My place is really small so I don't think I have room but I think we'll be moving by the end of the year so I am hoping we have more space then. Seems like a nifty little device that can make some good food. And if it can make a potato product that approximates a good french fry...I'm all in haha.

Alas, this is very true! But I hope over the long term we get more wins than losses. Great work though!

This is great! That is a lot of loss. The scale isn't lying, it's just reflecting a good week for you. I hope you can maintain the momentum! Do you feel like you're in a groove right now?

There is the weekend went ok! The weekend before kind of sent me off the rails, but by the end of last week I was back and didn't go too crazy over the weekend. And this week has been decent. Hey you are crushing it!!! You're definitely doing something right. Are you doing anything different? Keep it it!

Lots of good strategies here. I try not to have anything in the house that will be too tempting. So no cookies or ice cream, etc. Last night I was craving chocolate/sweets really badly, but instead I had a Greek yogurt and a mandarin orange and it passed. That felt like an effective way to deal with the cravings and I will try to use that going forward -- substituting something more healthy for when the cravings are really bad. The one day a week thing is almost always not at home, it's at a friend or family member's house. I am trying not to overdo it when I do have the treats and have been decently successful. I don't want to go way overboard and give back some of the progress I have made, so I am trying to keep that in mind. And I absolutely need to eat more slowly. Something that helps as well is if I finish a meal or a dessert, I will wait 30 minutes to see if I am still hungry or not. If I am still hungry, I will allow myself another portion, but almost always I feel sated if I just wait a bit. I think the hard part of this is that there is no one perfect way that works for everyone. Instead we have to take pieces of things and form them in a way that works for us. It's a process, but as long as we keep working at it we should find some combination that will help us get to our goals. Thanks for your insights!

So much good advice here! I also have bad stomach issues that have never been diagnosed with anything. I've been hospitalized multiple times due to stomach issues and continue to struggle. I've had multiple tests and endoscopies but no reason is ever given for what I have going on. I do know that there are certain foods that trigger me, and unfortunately they are often foods I really like. Fried foods are an especially bad culprit. I should probably stay away from fried foods completely, and this year I have been much, much better about it. To your second point, I am able to control what I eat without much trouble. My partner and I are more-or-less on the same page, and if anything I am the one who indulges too much. So if I want to get more healthy, I will have a lot of support there, which is good. I know other couples where they are far apart in what they want to do with nutrition and I would imagine this can cause friction. The grace thing is MASSIVE. When I struggle with my food choices, there is definitely an element of self-loathing and I just spiral out of control. This year I have been trying to just accept the slip ups, be easy on myself, but also try to get back on the path. I'm doing better in this way than I have for a couple of years, I just hope I can keep it up. Thank you for your reply!

First off, thank you for your thoughtful reply, there's a lot to think about and your offer some great perspectives. I would imagine having that diagnosis does make things easier to manage. What's interesting is that I don't have a diagnosis, but my father died young(ish) of a heart attack and was overweight and did not have a healthy lifestyle. I'm now in my early 40s and I really want to get to a healthy weight so I don't have the same heart trouble so young. We'll see if that's enough of a motivation, but it's something I've been thinking about with regard to my health. These are all interesting points. I would say that when I 'fall off the wagon' I do fall hard. I am happy that last week I had three really bad days, but was able to wrest control back and have had a much better week. And what I am hoping to build is not something temporary, but rather something long-term and sustainable, but I have not been too successful yet. I'm hoping that if I keep trying new ideas and methods something will hit, and I can ride that for as long as I can. I need to avoid the perfectionism, accept the occasional slip up, but then get right back on track. And I think the idea of rules to try to quelch the debate in my brain are helpful. I do better with a plan, and it's what I've been trying to do since the new year with moderate success. But at this point I will take moderate success and try to build on that.

Hey thank you for your reply and your kind words! This point you're making here is fantastic and it is what I have been struggling with for years. What I am trying to do this time is to not make my nutrition this temporary thing where I go back to 'normal' after the challenge. I want long-term, sustainable changes I can live the rest of my life with. And part of that is trying to figure out how to work in the 'freebies.' For most of the last challenge, I was allowing one day a week where I would have some cookies or sweets but staying on point the rest of the week. And I wouldn't overdo it on those days. If I could do that as my new normal, I think it would be fantastic and what I would like to work toward. I'm interested in your point though, do you totally stay away from things? And have you done it for awhile? I sometimes wonder if that will be ultimately what I have to do. This is a great point actually! And in the last challenge I didn't even set a target weight. 2021 was bad for me, so I was just trying to create new habits and wasn't as concerned with the scale. I think you're right -- the process is the most important thing, especially at the beginning. I think the tracking is more valuable if you have been stuck for awhile and you know maybe to lessen portions or make different choices, but right now, building up good habits is most critical for me. And I need to add more vegetables, there's absolutely no doubt about that. I think in the next challenge I will have a more overt vegetable goal. Maybe at least a serving of vegetables a day? I wish I liked how the taste but I generally do not ha. Thank you again for your feedback!

Woops, I thought in one of my posts the challenge ended tomorrow but I still have until March 19! Someday, I will pay attention when I read. Went up a pound this week. Not great, but considering how poorly I ate, I will take it. I had a good day yesterday and hope to have a good day today and a solid weekend. I hope everyone's week went well!

Hey all! I'm a bit late to the game but I'm trying to stay on the path with my goals. I started off the year really well, but this week I have strayed from my diet and I need to get back on track. The issue for me with nutrition is that when I fall off, I fall way off. So I need to stop the nonsense and get back on track starting today. With that in mind, let's dig in to the goals for the next few weeks, which are quite similar to the goals I had in the last challenge: 1) Finish the C25K program and run my race in mid March, then start training for my half marathon in May 2) Track my calories every day until the end of the challenge in MyFitnessPal to lose three pounds 3) Stay away from ice cream and fried foods until the end of the challenge. 4) Sleep 7 hours a night on work days 5) Join a beginner hockey league Non-fitness goals: 1) Read Hamlet by the end of the challenge 2) Work on my side hustle for four hours total The new one I am most excited about is the hockey league. I always wanted to play hockey growing up, but my parents never let me. This was probably for the best since I am a smaller dude and would have had some head injuries, but I would like to play one season in a beginner league. I just bought skates and a helmet and signed up for a league that is supposed to start in February sometime. They said they need more players before they run it, but I am chomping at the bit to go! Otherwise I want to get back on track with nutrition, sleep more, and keep preparing for my running races coming up. Let's go!

Rough week for me so far! I've really gone off the rails with my diet. I need to focus. I had a good start to the year and I can keep the momentum going. And I still have a couple of days to finish strong, so let's go! I will check back on Friday and hope that I haven't given back too much of my progress.

Hey all! I was away for a bit but still trying to stay on the path. After plateauing for a few weeks, I am down two pounds this week, so I am down four pounds since the beginning of the challenge. Not sure if I am going to lose eight more by next week to hit my challenge goal of 12 pounds lost, but hey, progress is progress, even if it is slow. I hope everyone else had a great week!

Well, I can't believe the challenge is already over! These five weeks truly flew by and I haven't kept up with the thread but I have been trying to keep up with my goals. Here is a quick breakdown of each before we head to the next challenge, including a letter grade for each. 1) Start the Couch to 5K app to build up to running a 5 mile race in March So far, so good here. I'm currently on week 6 of the challenge and I ran two miles in a row last week. I should be able to get up to five miles by the middle of March. I am progressing more slowly than I would prefer. When I have started up running again in the past, it was always with a big base of cycling as I used to cycle every day to work. And everywhere else since I didn't own a car. I haven't been biking like that since COVID hit, so my base isn't as good as it was. In any event, I can get my cardio back! Additionally, I have been doing a kettlebell/bodyweight routine three days a week, so I am trying to keep my strength up. Grade: A+ 2) Track my calories every day until the end of the challenge in MyFitnessPal I was able to do this! I'm sure I have forgotten a few things here and there, but I would imagine I am tracking 90 percent of what I eat. Grade: B+ 3) Stay away from ice cream and fried foods until the end of the challenge. I haven't had any ice cream, and I don't remember having much, if any, fried foods except for some fries when I went to a basketball game a couple of weeks ago. So I would say this is a win. Grade: B+ 4) Sleep 7 hours a night on work days My sleep is up-and-down. The last week was pretty bad, but I would say I was good about this in the previous weeks. Last week I just got caught up in playing a video game (Red Dead Redemption 1) and was trying to power through that, but it was killing my sleep schedule. I finished the game and should be able to sleep better going forward. Grade: C Random non-fitness goals: 1) Read one Shakespeare play a month Dropped the ball here. I did start reading the preface to Hamlet yesterday! So I hope I can still read 12 Shakespeare plays this year. Grade: D 2) Read one short novel in Spanish (my second language) I haven't done this yet. This is more a general goal for 2022 than for January but I think I should do it sooner rather than later otherwise I won't do it at all. Grade: Incomplete Overall grade: B+ Maybe I am being too nice to myself here. I've only lost two of the 40+ pounds I need to lose to get back to my grad school weight. My nutrition is still iffy overall. I had too many sweets and my portions were not as good as they should be. Heart problems run in my family so I have to really get locked in and back to a healthy weight. BUT I have laid the foundation of good habits. I have kept up my exercise. Tomorrow I'm registering for a fall marathon that will give me a guiding star to work toward through the spring and summer. I'm excited for the next challenge and THANK YOU to everyone who commented/read this thread!

Mid-week check in! How are you all doing? I had a really bad Saturday as I went over my calorie limit by a large amount. There was a huge snowstorm in the northeast so I stayed in and had hot cocoa and a ton of cookies. And then last night was my niece's birthday and I once again went out-of-control with my calories as I overindulged with birthday cake and cookies yet again. I did track everything, so I stayed on the path in that respect. Once again I am struggling with having a moderate amount of sugar. Instead of controlling myself, I blow right past any constraints because I wasn't mindful enough about what I would eat ahead of time. I have to remember to go in with a plan and stick to it. This weekend I was not mindful enough. It's ok, I can learn from it. And today is better! I weigh myself on Fridays so I still have three days to right the ship. I need to accept my blip of the last few days and move on.

No change in weight this week. I didn't have a terrible week but I didn't have a great one either -- hence my weight not budging. There's a big winter storm coming my way this weekend so I hope I just don't hunker down and overeat since there won't be much to do. I'm hoping to do some home workouts (and shovel snow) so at least I will be a little bit active. I'm hoping to catch up on some reading as well. I hope everyone had a good week!

This is me x100000. Fries destroy my digestive system (I have a hard time with anything fried) but I can handle burgers without a problem. And yet, whenever I get burgers, I always get fries and I always regret it later. So showing any restraint at all yesterday was pretty nice! Keep at it! You'll start seeing results if you're putting in the work!

Hey nice work! Keep that momentum going! That is great! It could be that you have a bit more water weight, and that next week will be a big win for you. Stay on the path! As for me, I went to a basketball game last night and there weren't many healthy choices for food. I ended up breaking the diet a bit and had a cheeseburger and fries. I often will overeat fries but this time I left some on the plate and felt like that was a good decision. I'll be back on track today so it shouldn't diminish my momentum. Happy Wednesday everyone!

Down 1.8 lbs this week, so it was good to see some progress on that front. It's a pace of losing weight that is slower than I would prefer, but if I can lose two pounds a month, I will be in a much better place at the end of the year than I am now, so I will take it. I've been good about tracking all my calories and staying away from foods that destroy my digestive system. The Couch to 5K running is going well. I went out for a nice run on my lunch break despite the chilly temps. I should be ready for the 5 miler in March I signed up for as long as I don't get hurt. I love running and it's fun to get back to it, even if I am heftier and slower than I would prefer! The sleep is not great. I work two jobs and when I work the second job I don't get back till 10:30 and I always want to have some time to myself so I often stay up late to play video games or watch sports since I don't have a chance to do that normally. I still need to stop making excuses and actually sleep though. I love weekends because I have time to nap and it makes me feel so much better. No progress yet on reading a Shakespeare play yet. I am trying to finish The World According to Garp and that is taking up my reading moments the last couple of weeks. I hope everyone is doing well!

Nice work! Overcoming a tough week is honestly great. Even if the margins aren't as big as we would like some weeks, those little wins can add up to big wins over time! I hope you crush it this week! Sorry about the plateau! I think it's great to go for walks and move a bit. I know I feel inertia toward not moving if I have been working all day. I wish I was better about working out before the day begins and I can get my exercise out of the way then, but I am not a morning person at all and struggle with this. Good luck with the nutrition. I hope that you don't have to change too much to see progress. Maybe a fine tuning here and there is all you need. Good luck!

Today was weigh-in day and I am down 1.8! So good to see finally see progress three weeks into the year! How's the week ending for all of you?

I feel you...I can't have too many sweet treats in the house or I will gobble them up so it's better to have a piecemeal approach to it and keep little to no treats in the house. Luckily my partner is fine with this arrangement. Sorry about the gain! Stay positive though, it happens to all of us. Tomorrow is my weigh-in!

It's honestly both! When I get a little taste, I tend to overeat in that moment, and I can go spiraling for a few days (or months) afterward. I keep making excuses to have treats, etc. I'm trying your method of incorporating a sweet treat into my life every day or every other day. I don't want to do full abstention if I don't have to, but it will depend on if I can manage just having a small amount every day or every couple of days or not. And some of the ideas people have thrown my way have been helpful for sure. So I think the idea you have about pre-packaging has merit. I'm thinking I can allow a daily allotment and plan that allotment ahead of time. So I will say, today I will allow one brownie instead of just saying, today I will have brownies. If I leave it too open ended I will overeat. Moderation is new to me so I am just trying to figure it out!