I had great expectations for this week's loss, since I was a good girl... and they all came through *s*. I've lost 1.3 lbs, which puts me on a total of 53.9 lbs (24.5 kg) loss, and 27.5 lbs (12.5 kg) to go!
Actually, I was a bit surprised. My period is due in 2 days, and most of the time I gain some just before it arrives... That's why I'm such a happy camper right now!!! *s*.
At the gym today: 20 minutes on the elliptical machine + 40 minutes on the treadmill = 680 calories burned to ashes *s*. I've also did 5 weights machines for the upper body. It sure was a good one!
::: :::
Here is a nice tip for you from The diet divas:
Be careful when you chew sugarless gum. Only two to three pieces should be consumed each day. The act of chewing actually will increase your saliva and will cause hunger! It is better to chew a piece of celery than a piece of gum!
And another very interesting article from Dr. Weil, called Mental Health. He explains how we can control stress, anxiety and depression by also paying attention to our diet and workout.
:::Lorien @ 03:57 PM MT :::
Sunday, March 30, 2003
:::Boy, it's so nice outside today! :::
It's unbelievable!!! 18C (64F) out there! And since I'm all by myself today (Joe is working) I couldn't resist the call of spring and went out for a walk, a vigorous one, even though today is my resting day. Couldn't miss the chance to walk outside and breath fresh air, for 50 minutes.
Boy, that was a good one, and I was taken by surprise!!! I remembered the trail as going up a hill, and very long... and to my surprise it seemed much shorter and not so hilly! *s*... I guess my body is telling me something good at this time! Yeap!!! ;-))
Added two more reads to the side bar... Becoming Something Greater and emerging, finding my own. Love to read all these stories... I can find so many similarities to mine... and they make my battle a lot easier.
That's it for now. Tomorrow... weighing day... Let's see how it goes *s*.
:::Lorien @ 01:45 PM MT :::
Friday, March 28, 2003
:::On mini goals and incentives :::
Many people on weight loss plan decide on mini goals along their journey, in which when there, they'll award themselves with something they really fancy. I guess it works for them, and each time they hit a mini goal they sense lots of pride and achievement, and they're happy with the award.
I didn't plan any mini goals in my weight loss process... didn't think about that at the time. For sure, I felt hilarious when I moved from 90 kg to 89 kg... from 80 kg to 79 kg... and now that I'm so close to 70 kg, I always think of the day when I see the scale being nice to me, showing me the 69 kg line.
But, I had one major goal when I've started! Bringing my high blood pressure to normal levels... without pills. I just wanted to get rid of the chemicals!!! And I wanted to take off the threat of heart diseases that was hanging like a Damocles sword above my head!!!
This goal of mine was achieved a month ago, and let me tell you... It made me so happy and so relieved I could cry!!! I felt like I conquered an unreachable summit! I felt like sitting right on top of mount Everest! Was that incentive big enough to go on with my diet and exercise plan? You bet! *s*.
But I have another little incentive hiding in my closet. A purple denim pants I used to wore when I was 30... 13 years ago, when I weighed 60 kg (132 lbs). The size no. is long washed, and I can't remember exactly what it was... but I just measured the waist line and it's 78 cm... 31.2 inches. I WANT TO BE ABLE TO WORE THOSE PANTS AGAIN!!!
I still remember how sexy I felt inside those pants, which fitted my body like a glove! And if, by any chance, I'll be able to wore them while I'm more than 60 kg... let's say 62 or 63... I think I'll stop right there...
because that will make me happy enough *s*...
Any incentives of your own you care to share? *s*.
:::Lorien @ 08:51 PM MT :::
Thursday, March 27, 2003
:::On Metabolism and counting calories :::
I was doing a research on the net to find an answer to one simple question: How many calories do I need to consume per day, tops, to lose at least 1 pound per week?
I've found some very informative resources which sharpened my knowledge. I had this idea of how much - more or less - I need, but this article, Eat More to Lose Weight: Metabolism Mathematics, by Katherine Tallmadge sure opened my eyes some more!
Few of the important things she talks about:
Our body knows best what it needs. If it "thinks" we're going to starve it (not supply enough food=energy as it needs, it'll react accordingly.
The amount of calories the body needs to survive is determined by 2 factors: 1) The level of physical activity it has to perform daily. 2) The resting metabolic rate (RMR).
"About one third of the calories you burn is from physical activity, which includes anything other than resting. In other words, everything from brushing your teeth to exercising.
The other two-thirds are burned as a result of regular metabolic function. It includes the calories needed to keep the body alive so that it maintains body temperature, heart beat, breathing, organ repair, and basic chemical reactions. Because RMR accounts for two-thirds of the calories burned, keeping the RMR high is essential to losing weight and keeping it off. In fact, it is more important than physical activity.
The RMR is influenced by a variety of factors including genetics, activity levels, body size, muscle mass, age, gender, body weight, pregnancy, and hormonal status. It's also important to know that the RMR naturally declines through adulthood at about 2% per decade, usually because of muscle loss (and that happens when a person goes through bad diets again and again.
"Scientists are beginning to understand why the body responds to calorie restriction by conserving energy. Several factors may contribute: in response to starving, insulin levels in the blood stream decrease, active thyroid hormone decreases, production of norepinephrine (similar to adrenaline) decreases. These substances are all major regulators of how many calories one burns at rest. As a survival mechanism, the body decreases these substances, and slows the nervous, cardiovascular, and gastrointestinal systems to help protect it against starving, producing a low RMR.
The most likely candidates for a below normal metabolism are long term, yo - yo dieters, dieters who restrict their calories too severely, and people with eating disorders such as bulimia and anorexia nervosa, who either starve, or alternate starving with binging...
...A low RMR has other consequences. The decline in metabolism makes it almost impossible to maintain weight loss."
At this point Katherine talks about the three factors that are crucial for losing weight, maintaining it, and keeping the metabolism high:
"First, since metabolism is dependent on lean body mass, muscle-building is important to increase your metabolism permanently and keep your need for calories high, whether youre starting with a low or normal RMR. And since muscle mass naturally declines as you age, building muscle is essential to keeping lean. In fact, as you become stronger and use heavier weights in your workout -- an indication that you've gained muscle -- you can eat more food because your need for calories naturally increases with muscle gain. The American College of Sports Medicine recommends strength training all of your major muscle groups twice a week.
Second, cardiovascular exercise burns body fat and calories, and improves health. As you improve cardiovascularly, your body becomes more efficient and burns more fat with each exercise bout. The minimum recommendation by most health groups is to accumulate at least 30 minutes per day of cardiovascular exercise.
The final element is diet. If you want to lose weight without effecting your metabolism negatively, the key is keeping calories as high as possible, but still slightly lower than what is needed to maintain weight. The metabolic experts recommend a daily caloric deficit of no more than 250 - 500 calories below the calorie level necessary to maintain your weight. Using the formula that 3,500 calories equals one pound, that would produce weight losses of one-half to one pound per week. (SEE SAMPLES AT END OF ARTICLE)".
RMR can be determined by using a mathematical formula called the Harris Benedict equation (instructions in the link).
Ok, that's exactly what I was looking for!!! I did the math, and found out that my RMR is 1,451. Since my activity level is high, in order to maintain my weight I can consume 2,321 per day. If I want to lose 1 pound per week, I need to lower that number to 1,821 calories per day. I think I'd start with 1,500 calories per day, and see how it goes. Wouldn't mind losing 2 pounds a week *s*...
Another RMR calculator can be found here. It does all the work for you!
:::Lorien @ 01:17 PM MT :::
Wednesday, March 26, 2003
:::I'm a good girl! :::
Yeap, honestly... Just got back from the gym. Had 10 minutes on the bikes, 20 minutes on the elliptical machine and 30 minutes on the treadmill, and burned 540 calories.
And... worked on lower body weights machines for some 20 minutes as well. At some point I thought I've pulled a muscle... but later the pain went away. I sure hope not to injure myself, and that's why I don't push myself to the limit.
Joe hurt his shoulder the first time we went to a gym (though it happened at his working place). Before we started we signed a contract... We paid 1,500$ in advance for 2 years. After 2 months Joe's shoulder came out of its place, and it got better only after a year. And I??? I didn't want to go to the gym by myself. Yea, I know... I'm a dweeb!!! *s*.
Boy, that was a very expensive workout indeed! That's also the reason why now we buy our membership from month to month... Just in case... *s*.
That's it. I'm going to cook myself a yummy supper! Cooked Bok Choy + Soy hot-dog. I've come to like Chinese food since I've moved to Canada. Couldn't care less for it before... Oh well, off I go, but not before I leave you with this:
"My doctor told me to stop having intimate dinners for four. Unless there are three other people." Orson Welles.
:::Lorien @ 05:24 PM MT :::
Tuesday, March 25, 2003
:::A correction, and how to avoid facial wrinkles :::
Joy! Joy! Fun! Fun!!! *s*. I've made a mistake yesterday with my numbers. Well, not a mistake, but I had this suspicion that since I've weighed myself in the afternoon, the numbers weren't correct. So I hopped on the scale in the gym today, again, and right now I'm on 160.8 lbs... Total loss for this week=1.3 lbs. Yay!!! I was in a happy shock state of mind! *s*. Can you tell I'm H-A-P-P-Y ???!!! *s*.
::: :::
How to avoid wrinkles, you ask? Here's a tip from Dr. Andrew Weil:
Growing older can bring unwanted changes to your skin -- and especially to your face. Most people believe that wrinkles are a natural part of aging, but 90 percent of wrinkles are due to sun exposure. Here are three tips for preventing wrinkles:
Stay out of the sun between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. -- ultraviolet rays can damage skin, reduce elasticity, and promote wrinkles. Always wear sunblock with an SPF of 25 or higher. It's also smart to wear a hat and sunglasses to help shade your face. Don't smoke. Bottom line: smoking causes wrinkles. Scientists suspect that smoke increases a protein in the skin that destroys collagen. Eat a healthy diet. People who eat foods rich in skin-protective antioxidants, such as leafy greens, legumes, and nuts, are less likely to develop wrinkles. The monosaturated fats in olive oil and the omega-3 fatty acids found in flax seeds, walnuts, salmon, and hemp seeds may help you resist wrinkles.
::: :::
I've also added Chrysalis and The Adventures of Shrinking Girl to my reads. Lots of interesting stories out there *s*.
:::Lorien @ 02:10 PM MT :::
Monday, March 24, 2003
:::Update :::
Just a short one to let you know I hopped on the scale today and found a .5 pound loss. Small and sweet *s*. So now I'm standing on 161.6... and 30 to go. Yay!! *s*.
And, I finally got courageous enough to join This is WEIGH Better! forum. Mighty fine group of ladies, always open to new members. Not there yet? Come join!
:::Lorien @ 10:42 PM MT :::
Sunday, March 23, 2003
:::Paying for my sins :::
Since Trish inspired me this morning + we did end up in a restaurant last night and stuffed our faces(BAD BAD ME! ;-)), I (reluctantly) had this little talk with my self this morning:
Self: You're so bad, it's disgusting!!! Stuffing yourself like that last night... You had to try 7 different kinds of sweets, haven't you??? Bhaaa... This is unreal!!!
Me: What the hell do you want? It was that hunger demon again... I had to do something!
Self: You sure have to do something... Now!!! Roll your butt to the gym and burn some of it. RIGHT NOW!!!
Me: But it's my day off. Even the instructor in the gym told me to have days off! And besides, I have to clean the house today. That will help me burn few calories for sure!
Self: Unacceptable! She doesn't know what you do with your spare time and money! And as to clean the house... Yea, right. I'm sure you're find an excuse to postpone it... again... You're going to get ready, eat something and GO TO THE GYM! NOW! MOVE!!!
Me: But...
Self: No buts! GO!
Darn... Self own... so I went. 15 minutes on the elliptical machine, 15 minutes on the bike, 30 minutes on the treadmill - total of 610 calories burned. I'm way behind you, Trish, but I'm most definitely out there on the track! I'M SO BAD, but hey... I"M SO GOOD!!! ;-))
Don't believe me? Look!
:::Lorien @ 12:25 PM MT :::
Saturday, March 22, 2003
:::How to defeat the hunger demon :::
This is a thing I've decided upon from the very beginning of my diet:
Ones a month we're going out to a restaurant for dinner, and at this time I'm eating (almost) everything my little heart desires, till there's no room in my stomach for another bite!
"Geezz", you probably think... "Doesn't that ruin your diet?!".
Well... NO. You see, I've come to terms with the fact that in my mind, I'm going to think "fat" for the rest of my life. That's the way it is. Though I'm thinking logically about the whole process, and feeding my body with all the good stuff that it needs, my desire to eat, eat, eat never really left. So, the hunger demon is still in there, demanding to be fed all the time. My conclusion was that there's no way for me to reach success unless I'll feed the demon from time to time. Let the bugger go his way ones a month, and by that knock him down for another few weeks.
And what do ya know??? It works! The hunger demon loves this monthly ritual to the bone! *s*, and as soon as we enter the restaurant I have to blindfold him, and keep my mouth shut, otherwise we both are going to drool all over the place... ;)
Please note, we always go to a buffet style places, where I can pick and choose my food. So mostly I eat lots of veggies, no red meat, try to avoid fatty stuff... and eat sweets. Yeap, sweets are my Achilles heel *s*.
The scale might be rude to me the next morning, but in a day or two it comes down again... My hunger demon is happy for few hours, and now I can move on towards the next loss.
Hell, who can constantly go about with a desire to stuff their faces and no fulfillment???
::: :::
Today and tomorrow - No gym. Rest days. But, since the weather looks nice outside, we might go out for a bike ride... the first one this year.
And who knows... We might end up in a restaurant... ;)
:::Lorien @ 11:39 AM MT :::
Friday, March 21, 2003
:::Thanks, guys. You're so awesome!!! :::
I want to thank all of you who came here yesterday, for leaving your warm welcome into the WL blogs world. You made me feel very warm and cosy inside and out, and by that helped me come forward with my truths.
I had a short workout at the gym today since we had to go to the stores right afterwards and had short time to do that before it was time for Joe to go to work. I've discovered the elliptical machine 2 days ago, and tried it for the third time today. I'm happy to report I've managed to stay on it for 15 minutes, on level 1. I was dripping sweat like crazy, but hey - 150 calories later, I didn't care much! *s*.
I also walked on the treadmill for 30 minutes, on 3.2 mph speed and 7.0 incline. Poof to another 250 calories!!! All in all, it was short - but sweet *s*.
::: :::
Indulge me for a sec... and let me tell you something about us. Before I met Joe (hubby) for the first time I was horrified (mind you, we were to meet as only friends... nothing romantic!). I had 180 pounds on me at the time, and I was scared to death I'll look terribly fat to him. My strategy was to prepare him... So when we talked, I always mentioned that he was going to meet a whale... a graceful one, but still... a whale. That's what I felt about myself at the time, and since I had this habit to be very honest with Joe, that's what I told him.
So the poor guy was hearing about the whale for months, and he started to believe me. And then came the moment we met at the airport... We hugged each other, he gave me a red rose ( he was the sweetest guy from the beginning *s*...), and then he looked at me and said: "So where is the whale? What the hell were you talking about all this time??? You're not at all what I expected!!!"...
Strategies of life... It worked so perfectly well for me *s*.
::: :::
You know what? It's 10C (50F) outside... and sunny... and blue... and beautiful. I'm going to go for a walk around the block. See you later *s*...
:::Lorien @ 04:47 PM MT :::
Thursday, March 20, 2003
:::New weight loss blog in your neighborhood :::
Ok, I'm coming out of the closet with this... *s*. Finally, I've decided to open a weight loss blog. I need all the boost I can get to move my weight loss process forward, so this blog will try to help me with just that! *s*.
I've copied all the posts regarding my diet from my main blog, 2HaTs, to here, since they give a good background to what I've been doing till now. So there's already one archived page.
The push to start this blog came from few very inspirational blogs I've been visiting lately... Blogs like Bev's This is WEIGH Better!!, Trish's Scale Whore, and Tiffany's Melting Away. It was fascinating to meet people who had the same problems I was battling with, and see how they overcome them. In time I'll add more of my "finds" to the side bar (Have to become more organized here *s*).
:::Lorien @ 04:57 PM MT :::
Friday, March 14, 2003
:::Need someone to boost your motivation? :::
I've found The Motivation Station site yesterday (not sure where). They present themselves as "your complete fitness resource, featuring ONLINE personalized fitness programs!". Sounded good to me, so I joined their mailing list. Every morning they send health/fitness tip into my mailbox. I'm gonna share this morning's tip with you, and then - go and register to the mailing list, and get them right into your mailbox. It sure seems to be a good motivation boost!
TIP OF THE DAY: Why is it so hard to stick with an exercise program in the beginning?
The simple truth is that when your body is used to something, it will resist change. If you are comfortable on the sofa and the phone rings, your bodys inertia resists you getting up and going to answer it. Likewise, if you just got done with a volleyball game you will have a difficult time falling asleep quickly. When you try to shock your body by doing two things its not used to doing: exercising and eating right, it will resist your efforts in many ways. You must be armed before hand so you can expect a struggle.
The reason why people burn out so quickly is because object at rest tends to stay at rest, and an object that is moving prefers to continue moving. It is pure physics. In the beginning is when you will notice the resistance more, because you are most likely making the transition from being sedentary to being active. Your muscles are not trained to work that hard yet! You will encounter periods of muscle soreness and fatigue, which is totally natural, but let me assure you that with the exception of those two things, most of what you will feel can be overcome mentally.
Starting an exercise program usually requires you to rearrange your schedule and it can be difficult to get into the new routine. Also, your body will try to tell you to skip the workout and just go home and lay on the couch. That is, until you turn the tables. The important thing with starting an exercise program is to get past that point where the norm is for you to NOT exercise. That way, when you dont exercise, you will actually feel out of place - or like something is missing - and you will look forward to your next workout. When this change takes place is different for everyone, but it seems to be around the 3 month mark. The period of time between the first week and the third month seems to be the most challenging.
:::Lorien @ 10:28 AM MT ::
Tuesday, March 11, 2003
:::Tip of the day: Give Your Mind a Workout :::
I bought Dr. Andrew Weil's book Eating Well for Optimum Health: The Essential Guide to Food, Diet and Nutrition few years back, after seen him on a TV show, but never read much of it.
Few days ago, after seeing the good doctor on TV again, I've registered to his online mailing list, and every morning I get his tip of the day in my mail box. Today's tip was one close to my heart:
Research suggests that people who take on intellectual challenges throughout their lives may be able to compensate for the biological changes caused by aging in the brain. In one study at the University of California at Berkeley, men and women over 60 years old held their own against younger subjects at a variety of tasks, including mental planning, organization, and problem-solving. These are functions that often deteriorate with age. Doing any challenging mental activity enables nerve cells to develop new branches and can aid in building the synapses between neurons that allow messages to flow. So, make a habit of playing chess, doing word puzzles, reading good books, or debating with your friends and colleagues. It will keep your mind fresh and agile.
I'm willing to do a lot to avoid total collapse of my brain cells... the kind my dad goes through right now. It always sits in the back of my mind, this dark unanswered question, if I might have inherited this illness already, and I don't know about it yet. I know I'm bound to know the answer one day, but then it'll be too late...
I'm going to give my mind a workout. Don't know yet what exactly, or how... but I'll find a way...
:::Lorien @ 02:03 AM MT :::
Monday, March 3, 2003
:::Report on change of lifestyle :::
<start report>
I forgot to mention it on Feb. 25th, so I'll do it now *s*... It's been a year since I've started my journey towards an healthy physical lifestyle. My main goal was to keep my high blood pressure (180/110 at the time) down to normal levels without any pills. I'm happy to report that for the last 2 weeks I've been off any kind of pill, and my levels stays on 120/75 most of the time. This is a HUGE achievement for me, so allow me to pat my shoulder here... I'm a very happy camper right now! *s*.
How do I do it? I work out 5 times a week in the gym. Every time takes around 90 minutes, in which I do cardio on bikes and treadmill for 70 minutes, and another 20 minutes of weights. After 2 months in the gym I'm starting to find new muscles in my body, and what do ya know? I also discovered I have bones in my body. Isn't that an amazing discovery? *s*...
At home, I also do Abs Yoga from a video cassette, stretching exercises and now I have a gym ball as well. My mom says I've been a lazy type before, and now I've gone to the kuku side. (Oh well, mom... As long as I feel good, I don't mind being called a kuku *s*).
My secondary goal was to lose weight. So far, I've lost 17 kg (37 pounds), and all in all 23 kg (50 pounds) from my highest weight 2 years ago. Most of it melted in the first 6 months, and then it became a slow and tedious process, but hey, at least I didn't gain some of it back, so I'm happy on this as well *s*.
My goal is yet to lose 14 kg (31 pounds). I'll try to get there in 30 weeks from now... towards the end of September 2003. No rush, I have all the time I need to do it right this time!!! *s*. </end report>
