Starting Weight: 172 lbs

Current Weight: 162 lbs

Total Weight loss: 10 lbs

HALF-WAY THERE!!!

(I totally cheated and used my weight from today instead of Thursday as I should have. I KNEW it was going to go below 10lbs today and I didn’t want to post an almost-there-but-not-quite post, so I waited until it was official)

It took me a little over 2 months to lose these 10 pounds, so the goal of getting to 20 pounds by mid-August isn’t going to happen. Right now I’m just trying to get back to the weight I was last fall (157 pounds) by the time I go back to Boston, and from there I’ll work on getting to my 20 pound goal.

I noticed that I haven’t posted my ULTIMATE goal here yet, seen as I’ve been so concentrated on 152 by August 15th. So just to put it out there (for the sake of positive thinking/praying to any weight loss gods) my ultimate goal weight is 145 pounds. Being 5’9”, that would put me right in the middle of the ‘healthy’ BMI. I’m still going to concentrate on my more immediate goal, but it’s nice to have an ultimate number to work towards!

*This post is from Thursday, I just didn’t get around to posting it until today*

Starting Weight: 172 lbs

Current Weight: 163.5 lbs

Total Weight loss: 8.5 lbs

Well I didn’t lose anything this week. Figures, after my disastrous weekend of party foods (and drinks). 

On another note, I’m going to the doctor and being tested for food allergies this week. I’ve had quite a few health issues since coming home from school in May, some of which may be connected to my diet or exercise changes. (That’s weird, isn’t it? I start treating my body so much better, eating really well, exercising a ton, and THEN I start having health problems.) I’ve added in a lot of foods that I didn’t eat much of at school (namely soy EVERYTHING) and I’m thinking that maybe I may have an allergy to some of them, especially since my mom was just diagnosed with allergies to soy and sugar. Yes, a sugar allergy. That would suck so much. But we’ll see. As for now I’m going to concentrate on getting rid of these pesky few pounds that don’t seem to be going anywhere!

Guess what I learned this weekend? 

Burgers and beer aren’t diet foods

Shocking, right? I should embroider that onto a pillow. Or maybe a wall hanging.

Starting weight: 172

Current weight: 163.5

Total weight loss: 8.5 lbs

Another 2 pound loss this week! So happy about that, I worked very hard this week!

I’m worried about this weekend though. I’m going to Boston and I can’t imagine anything there will be very good for my health, if you get my drift. We’ll see how this affects the scale…

I’ve also stopped counting every calorie, every day. I’m still eating the same number of calories, I’ve just stopped tracking them so closely. I have a pretty good idea of what I can eat and still feel good and continue losing, so I don’t think it’s as important now that I’m on a roll. Even with the awesome iphone app, it’s still very annoying to enter in every meal.

Starting weight: 172

Current weight: 165.5

Total weight loss: 6.5 lbs

After this past weekend, I wasn’t expecting much of a loss, so this half pound loss doesn’t surprise me. I went away to NYC this weekend and ate Chipotle and chocolate chip pancakes and didn’t exercise (although we did walk a TON). I came back on Monday weighing exactly the same as when I left  on Friday and then spent the whole week trying to catch up. It was worth every minute of it, though, and it was nice to give myself a bit of a break from my diet. As long as I can get back on track, I’ll let this just be a slip up. 

On another note, I injured my ankle at work today. I’m not sure if it’s sprained or just badly bruised, but either way it’s swollen up like a balloon and I’m going to have to stay away from the gym for a little while until it heals. I’m really hoping this doesn’t set me back with my weight loss. Any suggestions for exercise that won’t hurt my ankle? Maybe biking? Or should I just give it a rest?

I’m worried about tomorrow’s weigh in. I’m not feeling so hot about how I ate this week. And I’m still majorly craving something with chocolate. Womp.

Starting Weight: 172

Current Weight: 166

Total Weight Loss: 6 pounds

YAY YAY YAY! I’m FINALLY to the point where I lost two pounds in a week! Technically the scale was about a quarter pound below 166 (!!!), but I decided to round up to make it a solid two pounds for the week. I’m feeling great about this. Once I got to the point where I was losing two pounds a week last summer, it was easy sailing. I don’t even want to eat deserts and junk foods anymore and I’m enjoying all the salads and veggie dishes I’m eating. I’ve started challenging myself to make a different salad everyday of the week and have started adding goat cheese, butternut squash, roasted red peppers, and blueberries to make my food more interesting. All of this is really motivating me to keep going. Hopefully in two weeks I’ll be at 10 pounds, and half way there!

So I’ve got a question here. What do y’all do when you go out to dinner/lunch and need to order something healthy? I get so anxious about how much butter/oil everything is cooked in when I’m not making it myself! Salads are usually even worse, with all the toppings and fatty dressings. What can you order to ensure it won’t ruin your diet for the day? Is it okay to eat before and just get a drink at the restaurant?

And what about eating over at a friend’s house or dinner party? Is it okay to politely decline food that doesn’t fit your diet? I got so anxious when my boss ordered italian food for lunch for the whole office on Friday. While it was a very nice gesture, all I wanted was the tofu and salad I had planned! I found myself using the excuse “I’m a vegetarian” (that’s a lie) so that I could eat my lunch from home without having anyone question me. I hate to say that I’m on a diet as an excuse, especially since most of the office is male. I did let myself have one of the rolls and it was fabulous, so I’m still a sucker for the occasional italian treat!

Despite those few issues that have come up, I’m feeling great. I’ve worked out (in some capacity, whether going to the gym, running, hiking, biking, or doing yoga) everyday for two weeks! I’ve also noticed that I’m not hungry as often and I get full very quickly. This sure makes this diet easier! I’m glad I’m finally falling into these good habits.

Starting weight: 172

Current weight: 168

Total weight loss: 4 pounds

I was disappointed when I first weighed myself. This is only a 1 pound loss from last week, when I was hoping for two. But 4 pounds in 3 weeks is really good! Especially since I overate this weekend, I’m happy with this. They say that to lose a pound a week, you need a 500 calorie deficit per day. To lose two pounds, a 1000 calorie deficit, etc. (For example: Eat 1500 calories, burn 2500 calories = 1000 calorie deficit) Right now I’m averaging a 1,100 calorie deficit depending on how long I workout for, so I’m hoping this weight loss will pick up.

My main problem this past weekend was overeating. As I mentioned, I was on a yoga retreat and the food was INCREDIBLE. It was all organic and prepared without oils. It was all very healthy (with so many different choices!!!), but it tasted so good that I overate at almost every meal. I’d like to think that the health factor in all the food cancelled out how much I ate of it, but when it comes to overeating, you can still go too far with healthy foods. A calorie is still a calorie. But my favorite meal of the weekend? A breakfast of scrambled thai tofu, steamed broccoli and cauliflower, and raspberry soy yogurt with barley flakes, dried coconut, dates, and almonds. So much all natural yum! On top of that, breakfast was right after a sunrise yoga class and was completely silent, so the whole meal had a really neat, reflective vibe to it. There is something to be said about really enjoying your food as an almost spiritual experience instead of plopping down in front of the TV! Even though it may have done me in for this week’s weigh in, I don’t have any regrets that I ate so much this weekend. I’m not going to have a chance to have that much natural, organic, vegetarian food prepared for me again, so I’m glad I let myself appreciate it!

Now let’s try for 166 next week!