Somewhere between Liz Lemon and Barefoot Contessa

[theatreghostie]

Hey hey hey!

 

I posted a little self-introduction on the Rebel Introductions thread, so here's the short version: been overweight my entire life and never made an attempt at long-term lifestyle change (diet and exercise); recently had a huge surge of energy and inspiration, and I'm trying to make those changes now at 261lbs; having fun with it and trying maintain a good attitude about my body!

 

My big goal is losing 20lbs by September 1st. I have no idea if that's a realistic or unrealistic goal, but 20lbs ago was when I felt really good about my body and my energy levels, and September 1st was the only date that didn't feel too soon.

 

For this challenge:

 

1. Maintain 1500-1800 calories per day - I've been tracking my calories with My Fitness Pal and it has been EYE-OPENING in a fun way.
2. Have at least vegetable per day - ideally more, but I know I can go all day without consuming any produce if I'm not thinking about it!
3. Visit the gym 3x per week - even if it's just 15 minutes of slow-walking on the treadmill. Ideally I'd like to do a combination of treadmill walking and bodyweight workouts but I know I need to start slow to build the habit. Giving myself permission to leave after 15 minutes is my  compromise to make sure I ACTUALLY go.
4. Free-writing for 15 minutes 3x per week - my other big goal is to complete a short story, but that muscle has not been worked in a looooong time so we go with baby steps.

 

I've already been working on the first two for the past week (with some setbacks - Victoria Day long weekend equals many beers with friends!) so I'm feeling like I have a bit of momentum heading into it and I'm feeling good!

 

Big motivator: I'm leaving June 30th for a 10-day vacation in Sicily with my boyfriend's family. I'm looking forward to relaxing at bit, but also hoping that I'll have some extra energy from my new diet/exercise habit that will come in handy while I'm wandering cobblestone streets for several hours a day in the sun. 

[ladyofthebog]

Sicily!! Wonderful! I very much jive with your get to the gym goal. I find just getting there is the hardest part but once I’m there I’m ready to rumble 

[theatreghostie]

Thanks, ladyofthebog! I use that approach to get a lot of things I don't enjoy done - cleaning, tackling my inbox, anything with crowds. (Gotta say, I LOVE your "Hobbit Frame of Mind BUT FIT" approach - your challenge was inspiring!)

[RES]

What about having a 'fall back' option if you can't/don't make it to the gym? Like a walk around the neighborhood, or bodyweight workout at home?

Good luck with your goals, I think 20 lbs by then is do-able!

[theatreghostie]

Yes, thank you, RES! I am going to the gym mostly to use the treadmill, but if I don't get to the gym I have the option of a) the NF Beginner Bodyweight Circuit which I like, or b. a very silly but VERY FUN walking workout on Youtube. I forget the name of the lady who leads it, but she's having a great time and honestly I'm into it.

[RES]

9 hours ago, theatreghostie said:

Yes, thank you, RES! I am going to the gym mostly to use the treadmill, but if I don't get to the gym I have the option of a) the NF Beginner Bodyweight Circuit which I like, or b. a very silly but VERY FUN walking workout on Youtube. I forget the name of the lady who leads it, but she's having a great time and honestly I'm into it.

I might have to check that out! 

[Sylvaa]

Welcome to the forums!

 

On 5/21/2018 at 5:16 PM, theatreghostie said:

My big goal is losing 20lbs by September 1st. I have no idea if that's a realistic or unrealistic goal, but 20lbs ago was when I felt really good about my body and my energy levels, and September 1st was the only date that didn't feel too soon.

 

September 1 = ~ 12 weeks away; 20 lbs / 12 weeks = ~1.7 lbs / week. That is a lofty, but not unreasonable goal. This is a weekly caloric deficit of approximately 6,000 calories (if you like data).

 

There are a lot of different factors that go into how quickly a person can lose weight, so it's definitely something to aim for. But from your post, it sounds like you won't get too frustrated if it takes you a little bit longer than that - which is awesome! Have you used a TDEE calculator to determine your average calorie needs? How have you felt in terms of hunger?

 

I love your goals for this challenge. You've done a good job of starting small and building a great base. 

[theatreghostie]

Long overdue challenge update!

 

Week 0

I made an attempt at my goals the week before the challenge started to see if there were going to be any friction points and if I needed to readjust, and I actually did quite well! Unfortunately I think I might have burned myself out trying to do too much because Week 1 didn't go quite as well. 

 

GOAL #1: 1500-1800 calories/day

Hit this goal 4 out of 7 days. It was interesting to see where I was consuming extra calories and where I was actually falling short of my caloric intake needs. I've developed some snacking strategies that should HOPEFULLY help later on but also trying not to beat myself up about going over. One day I went over was because I was out at a work event with my boss and had a couple glasses of wine and some gelato; another was a day I had a super intense workout and burned a ton of calories so still ended up in a deficit; and the other was from making a really delicious, slightly fatty dinner with my boyfriend. No regrets!

 

GOAL #2: Vegetables with at least one meal per day

I actually had to go back and check my meal logs for this because I wasn't thinking about it.. I hit it every day! And several days I had veggies with two meals. I might adjust this to be a little more challenging next time.

 

GOAL #3: Gym 3x per week

I only got to the gym twice, BUT I supplemented it with four days of at-home workouts. I had an absolutely phenomenal workout on a day where I reeeeeeally did not feel like going to the gym but forced mysel to go anyway with my "15-minute" rule. It worked and I was on the treadmill for close to an hour. I planned just to do some walking, but ended up challenging myself with a super steep incline, and even started running a few times. (For the musical theatre fans among you, Legally Blonde is indeed the best musical for working out.) It felt absolutely amazing; it was probably the first time in my life that I've really understood what people mean when they talk about the gym being "me time". 

 

GOAL #4: Free-writing for 15 minutes 3x per week

I did this, but it was a bit of a struggle. None of the writing sessions produced anything particularly good - sometimes just train of thought ramblings - but at least I did it!

 

@Sylvaa Wow, thank you for breaking down that math for me! When you put it that way, it is an ambitious goal. I don't think I'll be overly upset if I don't hit the 20lb mark by September (especially considering my vacation in Italy will probably undo some of if not all the weight I lose before then) but maybe I'll readjust it. We'll see how Week 1 goes!

 

 

[CanisLatrans]

Sounds like you're killing it! Keep it up for week two!

[turtleduck]

7 hours ago, theatreghostie said:

It felt absolutely amazing; it was probably the first time in my life that I've really understood what people mean when they talk about the gym being "me time". 

Woot! Sounds like you unlocked a hidden achievement.

 

7 hours ago, theatreghostie said:

but at least I did it!

THIS.

[theatreghostie]

Thank you so much for the support @CanisLatrans and @turtleduck! 

 

Week 1: May 28-June 3

This was a tougher week for me; it was an extremely stressful work week, and the fatigue spilled over into my personal life.

 

GOAL #1: 1500-1800 calories/day

Hit this goal 3 out of 7 days. One of the other days I was under. It's been a bit challenging to plan for an entire day of eating rather than making healthy choices in the moment; this is something I'd love to work on. Still, none of my overages were a result of solo binges, only from shared meals out with friends.

 

GOAL #2: Vegetables with at least one meal per day

Cleared it easy! Definitely going to change this up for the next challenge.

 

GOAL #3: Gym 3x per week

Only got to the gym and hit the treadmill once, but did 3 workouts at home - 1 cardio, 2 bodyweight. Two mornings in a row I woke up feeling sick from stress and opted to take it easy before heading into work (normally when I would work out). I'm still finding a balance between letting myself off the hook when I'm not feeling well (or tired, or in a bad headspace) and pushing myself to do the work. Ultimately I let it go this week but I want to push myself more in Week 2.

 

GOAL #4: Free-writing for 15 minutes 3x per week

Only got it in twice, BUT at least one was actual progress towards a finished piece. 

 

Week 1 Summary

I'm feeling a little discouraged by this week. I put my fitness goals on the back burner to deal with work crises, which would normally be no sweat, but this is supposed to be the month where I prioritize myself and my personal goals. So going into Week 2 I'm trying to reframe my choices and routine to make sure I get that time in. Gotta think back on that amazing gym victory in the pre-challenge week and remember that just trying even when I don't feel like it can have AMAZING results, and will feel better than just doing nothing.

[CanisLatrans]

Don't be too discouraged! If you keep going, even if it takes you longer, you'll eventually meet your fitness goals. And I bet whatever happens you'll be better off at the end of the month no matter what as long as you're trying. (For example, I'm hitting my goals 50% of the time, but if I wasn't doing this challenge I'd probs hit them 10% of the time. I'll definitely take 50% results over 10%!)

[theatreghostie]

21 hours ago, CanisLatrans said:

(For example, I'm hitting my goals 50% of the time, but if I wasn't doing this challenge I'd probs hit them 10% of the time. I'll definitely take 50% results over 10%!)

 

Thank you for saying this, @CanisLatrans! I try to remind myself of this regularly but it’s always nice to hear it from others. 

 

I wanted to note as well that even when I’m faltering on my goals, I do feel like my relationship with my body is improving! The physical difference isn’t noticeable yet, but I just enjoy and appreciate my body more now that I’m a) putting it to work with regular movement and b)giving it healthy, whole foods on a regular basis. I’m enjoying this new mindset and feeling, even if I never lose a pound. 

[Sylvaa]

On 6/4/2018 at 7:47 PM, theatreghostie said:

Week 1 Summary

I'm feeling a little discouraged by this week. I put my fitness goals on the back burner to deal with work crises, which would normally be no sweat, but this is supposed to be the month where I prioritize myself and my personal goals. So going into Week 2 I'm trying to reframe my choices and routine to make sure I get that time in. Gotta think back on that amazing gym victory in the pre-challenge week and remember that just trying even when I don't feel like it can have AMAZING results, and will feel better than just doing nothing.

 

Work crises are no joke! I definitely struggle with this too. While getting to the gym is a great goal, don't discount (or get discouraged!) at home workouts! Also, you did something instead of nothing - that is a huge win! Especially when dealing with work stress. 

[ilsudur]

On 6/6/2018 at 3:50 PM, theatreghostie said:

I wanted to note as well that even when I’m faltering on my goals, I do feel like my relationship with my body is improving! The physical difference isn’t noticeable yet, but I just enjoy and appreciate my body more now that I’m a) putting it to work with regular movement and b)giving it healthy, whole foods on a regular basis. I’m enjoying this new mindset and feeling, even if I never lose a pound. 

 

With a lack of expertise in everything but the power of viewpoint, you've made a huge progression step here.  I'm still not happy with my own corporeal frame, even when I do start to see results.  With your outlook, goals are that much closer, and I can guarantee you'll make progress.  Looking forward to your next update.

[theatreghostie]

23 hours ago, ilsudur said:

 

With a lack of expertise in everything but the power of viewpoint, you've made a huge progression step here.  I'm still not happy with my own corporeal frame, even when I do start to see results.  With your outlook, goals are that much closer, and I can guarantee you'll make progress.  Looking forward to your next update.

Thank you so much! It definitely keeps me going much more so than shame or self-hatred. I had some struggles with binge-eating this week (you'll see in my update) and it was a lot easier to bounce back from it when I remembered that diet and exercise are things I do out of love for myself, not punishment for my body. 

I will say as well that prior to this I've spent many years dabbling in body positivity and felt very happy in my body at 240lbs, so it's a muscle that I've used before, just not in a while.

[theatreghostie]

Week 2: June 4-10
Some major highs and lows this week!

 

GOAL #1: 1500-1800 calories/day

Hit this goal 4 out of 7 days this week. One day under, two days over. I was having a great week and feeling good about my intake and then the weekend happened... Long story short, I had two extremely difficult days at work - it challenged my confidence, and exhausted me emotionally, and I turned to food for comfort. On Friday I ate an entire bag of Doritos for dinner, and on Saturday I ordered Thai food and had wine. I felt really bad about Friday, really beat myself up, and on Saturday I decided,  "This is what it is, I can always start again tomorrow," and let it go. Lessons learned!

 

GOAL #2: Vegetables with at least one meal per day

Accomplished, but I'm finding that I'm preferring fruit to veggies these days, maybe because of the summer weather? I'm counting fruit separately from veggies but something to think about next challenge.

 

GOAL #3: Gym 3x per week

Only went in the gym once, but I actually managed to incorporate SOME kind of movement into every day this week! A combination of walking, running, yoga, and bodyweight circuits. It felt really good, especially when I overate.

 

GOAL #4: Free-writing for 15 minutes 3x per week

Only got it in twice, but one was an extra-long session and I connected with my writing partner about setting up some co-writing time.

 

Week 2 Summary
Much like last week, I had some setbacks and had to learn how to cope with that without losing momentum. I do wish that if I had gone over in my calories, that it had been because I was enjoying an indulgent meal or drinks with my loved ones, instead of bingeing by myself, but I think "failing" has reminded me why I'm doing what I'm doing. I'm also excited that I managed to incorporate movement into every single day without feeling stressed or overwhelmed!

 

MONDAY: 1369 calories, 15-minutes gentle yoga before bed
TUESDAY: 1596 calories, NF Beginner Bodyweight Circuit (2 sets)
WEDNESDAY: 1792 calories, 30-minutes walking in place (with variations)
THURSDAY: 1749 calories, NF Beginner Bodyweight Circuit (2 sets)
FRIDAY: 2574 calories, C25K Week 1 Day 1 + 20-minutes recumbent bike + 60-minute walk after dinner
SATURDAY: 2693 calories, 30-minutes relaxing yoga
SUNDAY: 1734 calories, 30-minute walk home instead of taking the bus

 

This week, I want to continue with C25K (maybe get in a run outside??), try for 3 sets of the bodyweight circuit, and go the full week without getting any takeout.

[theatreghostie]

Mid-week update to say I RAN OUTSIDE. TWICE. IT WAS REALLY HARD BUT I DID IT. 

 

(This is a huge deal for me because I have always been PETRIFIED of being seen exercising outside; the gym was one fear to conquer, and now being out in public and being active means I have accomplished something MOMENTOUS. The park near my house has a track that is mostly used by other runners, ranging in ability-level, so it feels more private and gym-like than running around the block or something.)

 

 

[RES]

On 6/13/2018 at 12:00 PM, theatreghostie said:

Mid-week update to say I RAN OUTSIDE. TWICE. IT WAS REALLY HARD BUT I DID IT. 

 

(This is a huge deal for me because I have always been PETRIFIED of being seen exercising outside; the gym was one fear to conquer, and now being out in public and being active means I have accomplished something MOMENTOUS. The park near my house has a track that is mostly used by other runners, ranging in ability-level, so it feels more private and gym-like than running around the block or something.)

 

 

Oh I know those feels!! Great job!!

[ilsudur]

On 6/13/2018 at 9:00 AM, theatreghostie said:

Mid-week update to say I RAN OUTSIDE. TWICE. IT WAS REALLY HARD BUT I DID IT. 

 

(This is a huge deal for me because I have always been PETRIFIED of being seen exercising outside...)

I'd call that a huge win then.  Good job, and I'm right there with ya.  I'd almost rather be seen poorly-dressed (or lacking some important article of clothing) than seen running around outside, unless there's something to run from.

 

Keep it going!

[theatreghostie]

Thanks to all for your support! I'm glad people understand how hard something like that can be. : )

 

Week 3: June 11-17

This week I had to take a mental health day from work, so that should give you an idea of how I'm feeling lately!

 

GOAL #1: 1500-1800 calories/day

Hit this goal 3 out of 7 days. Out of the rest, two were over and two were under. Hilariously I thought this would be an easy goal but it's actually the hardest! My average for the week hit within my acceptable range but I definitely way under-ate on a few days, which concerns me. I find it difficult to stay consistent day-to-day, maybe because I don't generally eat the same things every day? I do meal prep but my post-work snacks tend to be the biggest game-changer; either I indulge a bit and go over or I skip it and stay way under. Quandaries!

 

GOAL #2: Vegetables with at least one meal per day

Done and done!

 

GOAL #3: Gym 3x per week

I actually did not set foot in the gym once this week, but I did get in a work-out 5 out of 7 days. I cut one run short because it was so hot outside and I just felt gross and tired. I still did about half the run, so about 15-20 minutes total. 

 

GOAL #4: Free-writing for 15 minutes 3x per week

Only done once this week. I lied, this is the hardest goal.

 

I took a pretty serious BREAK on Sunday from the grind of breakfast-work-out-shower-meal-prep-work-8-hours-sleep-start-again I've been in the last two weeks, and it felt reeeeeeaaaaaally good to just spend a day watching Queer Eye and playing Sims and eating (veggie, whole wheat) pizza. Like so good I briefly flirted with ditching the whole challenge good. I haven't slowed down like that in over a month due to an extra busy overtime work schedule, prepping for my trip, and trying to have a life. 

 

That said, I have officially lost 10lbs in the month since I started this journey, I have noticed muscles and definition forming that I've never seen before, and I have started researching 5ks to try out in the fall; I didn't want to lose all that momentum and growth, so here we are, back at it again. Not giving up. Seeing at least this last week of the challenge through. Because I can.

 

Week 3 Summary
MONDAY: 1602 calories, C25K Week 1 Day 1
TUESDAY: 1131 calories, NF Beginner Bodyweight Circuit (2 sets)
WEDNESDAY: 1849 calories, C25K Week 1 Day 2
THURSDAY: 1756 calories, NF Beginner Bodyweight Circuit (2 sets)
FRIDAY: 1340 calories, C25K Week 1 Day 3 (cut short at the halfway mark)
SATURDAY: 2207 calories, rest day
SUNDAY: 2119 calories, rest day

[Honorata]

Don't beat yourself up too much for taking a full rest day -- sometimes we need them. Especially with how crazy it sounds like things have been at work for you. As long as you get back to it after your rest day, it's good to take a day to recharge once in a while. One thing that might be helpful is taking a rest day from working out during the week and only do something light like walking or stretching, and then have one of your weekend days (assuming you don't work weekends) be a day you work out, but don't work. The rest day during the week should give you some time to recharge your work out groove, and having a weekend day have time set aside to workout will help you associate exercise not with work but with taking care of yourself? That might not work for you, but I've found it helpful in the past.

 

Also, hello fellow Thinker-About-Doing-A-5k-In-The-Fall. I'm currently looking at running my first 5k in mid-September and I'm very nervous but it's definitely giving me something to work towards.

[ilsudur]

18 hours ago, theatreghostie said:

I took a pretty serious BREAK on Sunday from the grind of breakfast-work-out-shower-meal-prep-work-8-hours-sleep-start-again I've been in the last two weeks, and it felt reeeeeeaaaaaally good to just spend a day watching Queer Eye and playing Sims and eating (veggie, whole wheat) pizza. Like so good I briefly flirted with ditching the whole challenge good. I haven't slowed down like that in over a month due to an extra busy overtime work schedule, prepping for my trip, and trying to have a life. 

 

That said, I have officially lost 10lbs in the month since I started this journey, I have noticed muscles and definition forming that I've never seen before, and I have started researching 5ks to try out in the fall; I didn't want to lose all that momentum and growth, so here we are, back at it again. Not giving up. Seeing at least this last week of the challenge through. Because I can.

 

Because you haven't taken a break frequently enough, your body/mind/psyche reacted so favorably to it.  Definitely don't quit, especially since you're seeing such good results.  Just remember to be careful about burning yourself by going too far too fast.  "It is not meet that man should run faster than he is able."  A break weekly is beyond healthy.

[theatreghostie]

Hoooooo boy I've been gone for a long time, haven't I? Almost a month exactly since my last post and I never updated on my final week of the challenge.

 

Week 3: June 18-24

I definitely took my foot off the gas quite a bit in the last week of my challenge, though looking back (thank god for trackers) I'm not upset with myself. I had a work retreat this week, a birthday party for my friend (which involved a lot of wine) and a BBQ at my folks', so there were a lot of opportunities to go off-script with my diet and exercise. I did stop tracking by the weekend, at least partially because it's suuuuuuper difficult to track calories when you're eating lots of little hors d'ouvres and drinking a lot of sangria. But honestly, I'm not mad about it; I had a GREAT, fun weekend with my friends and my family and did not feel at all bad about my choices.

 

GOAL #1: 1500-1800 calories/day

Over just about every day but still under 2000 calories, which I feel like is an acceptable margin of error. I definitely indulged in some things I had been avoiding during this challenge (including a cheeseburger, and a lot of alcohol) and just couldn't really bring myself to feel guilty about it!

 

GOAL #2: Vegetables with at least one meal per day

Done and done!

 

GOAL #3: Gym 3x per week

No actual gym time, but I managed one at-home bodyweight circuit. However, my work retreat was at Blue Mountain so it included a challenging 90-minute hike, and I got in a nice 20-minute swim at our hotel pool!

 

GOAL #4: Free-writing for 15 minutes 3x per week

Oops, not even once. Definitely need to re-assess this goal for next time!

 

Week 4 Summary
MONDAY: 1855 calories, no workout
TUESDAY: 1881 calories, NF Beginner Bodyweight Circuit (2 sets)
WEDNESDAY: 1956 calories, no workout
THURSDAY: 1992 calories, 90-minute uphill hike
FRIDAY: 1763 calories, no workout
SATURDAY: ?? calories, no workout
SUNDAY: ?? calories, no workout

 

POST-CHALLENGE RETROSPECTIVE/ONE MONTH LATER UPDATE

I learned so much from this challenge! I learned about the food I was consuming and how to modify it slightly for healthier meals. I learned how difficult it can be to strike a balance between over- and under-consuming calories. I learned what types of exercise I enjoy, or find manageable. Most importantly, I ACTUALLY ENJOYED WORKING OUT. I have not been adhering to the same goals since the end of the challenge, but these four weeks (5 including the week leading in!) really changed the way I perceive my own health.

 

The week following the challenge was an emotionally draining one, and then at the end of that week I left for a 10-day vacation in Sicily and Rome! I was very emphatically NOT on a diet there, and could not have been happier about it, but honestly there were only a few occasions where I felt we really indulged. I had quite a few glasses of wine with meals, but they use very small glasses, so in total it maybe ended up being 3 glasses poured the way I would drink them at home. We had a lot of great pizza, arancini, pasta, and seafood, all made with fresh, local ingredients. (Tuna steaks and swordfish caught earlier that day YUM.) Italians eat a very small breakfast, a large late lunch and a large late dinner, but we were doing so much there was no time to graze on snacks in between, so it felt balanced. PLUS I walked at least 10,000 steps every day (including travel days - Rome has a huge airport!) and even reached 26,000 steps/16km on one day! 

 

Week 3 of my challenge I weighed in at 251lbs (down 10lbs from my highest weight at the start of the challenge) and right before I left for my trip I was around 255lbs; the day after my trip, I weighed in at 256lbs! Not bad for no diet and no gym!

 

Readjusting to life at home has been a bit of a challenge; my work schedule has changed completely (from 1:00-9:30pm to 8am-5pm) and my summer weekends are so jam-packed that I haven't really had a chance to catch up on things like groceries, meal prepping, and chores, so rather than rush into another challenge I've decided to take it slowly and figure out my routine. I'm looking at starting the Darebee Foundation Light program (30 days of light strength and cardio workouts) this week and planning some meals without worrying about calorie-counting. 

 

I could not have made the progress I did without the support of this community. Thank you to everyone who followed along and encouraged me! I will absolutely be back for another challenge, and cheering other folks along their journeys as well!

[turtleduck]

I like your attitude!

 

Enjoying workouts and not feeling guilty  about special occasion indulgence sound like success to me!