The Battle of the Bulge - week 5

My current weight: 177
My current BMI: 25.4 (overweight)
Pounds lost so far: (9.6) - 1.6 lb gain this week
Days of Cardio this week: 1
Days of Yoga this week: 0
Days of Strength training this week: 2

Well, I am slightly embarrassed to admit that I gained weight this week! I was much less strict with myself this week, I am on a more time-consuming rotation and am finding it difficult to find time to make sure I am making healthy choices. It's no excuse, though! There are a few things I can point to as culprits for this week's weight gain. First of all, it is likely slightly artificially elevated as I spent the 2 days prior to my weigh in celebrating my engagement which included lots of yummy food. I ate whatever I wanted in larger quantities than I normally would because, really, it's a once in a lifetime thing! So, that didn't help and my weight may be a bit higher than it really is as all that food is still in my system :) Second of all, I haven't been drinking enough water lately - which has resulted in some slowing of my GI tract, if you know what I mean. I need to hydrate well so I can get that digested weight out of me! Third of all, the work I'm doing this month is more physically demanding (especially on my upper body!) and I have been gaining muscle day by day! Muscle is HEAVY!

Weight Loss Tip of the Week
I can't think of a better time to discuss this tip. If you are trying to lose weight and have a bad day or a bad week, forgive yourself and move on! So often people feel discouraged and just give up. "I can't do it!" is your worst enemy. If you lose 0.5 lbs when you wanted to lose 5 you may feel disappointed but you still LOST! It's a step in the right direction. If you maintain your weight instead of lose, congratulate yourself for not gaining! And if you gain, assess why that may have been (could it have been the engagement cupcake you had the night before weigh in? :)), and use that knowledge as you push forward to attain your goals. You may have to adjust your goals if you realize your progress is less than your initial ideal, but the ultimate goal is to lead a healthier lifestyle that you can maintain for your lifetime - and it takes time to figure out exactly what that is!

The second part to this tip is that you are ALLOWED to indulge once in a while! It is best to think of desserts as a once in a while treat rather than a course in the meal, yes, but if you feel like having that dessert or simply MUST have a cookie and nothing else will do and all you can think about is the cookie, then let yourself do it. When you indulge, try not to think, "Well, today is ruined!" as that will only lead to further bad choices in the day. You can compensate by exercising more that day or eating a bit less at dinner. Or you can just say ok, I indulged. Now I will eat healthier the rest of the day. What you don't want to end up doing is taking the attitude that the day is ruined because of the cookie, then eat french fries and two double whoppers for dinner.

In that vain, I am not going to beat myself up over my gain this week. I think I will need to adjust my goal of being down to 150 by graduation, however. I don't think that I can realistically (and healthily!) attain that goal in that amount of time. I think I will shoot for 155-160 as at one point I was under 160 but still fitting in that size 8 because I was all muscle :) That seems fair and reasonable! And now that it is still daylight when I get home from work I'd like to start walking/running with Kermit more after work. I hope I am done early enough to do so!