Stuck in the Middle:)

Well, it seems I'm not meant to win a weigh-in just yet! Kudos to my parents, though, for beating out the kids this week! I came in 3rd place this week, but at least I still lost a little:) This week's lost was only .8 pounds, but added to last week's number I've lost a total of 4 so far! So, averaging out to 2 pounds per week, I think that's what most doctors recommend, right? I guess I'm a little discouraged on not losing the weight faster, but I'm convinced I'm doing it the right way so that makes me feel better. My jeans are getting looser and that's great! I will be taking my measurements the 1st of each month to see if I'm losing inches.

This week I started Jillian's 30 Day Shred DVD and oh my goodness, I'd forgotten what it was like to be in so much pain just sitting down:) It's a great hurt, though, it's time to be waking up those muscles I'd forgotten I had! My plan is to do the DVD 3 times or so per week (in addition to cardio work at the gym) so I obviously won't be finishing it up in 30 days, but that's okay. I'll do "Level 1" 10 times and then move on to "Level 2" and so on. Already when I did it last night I could tell I was stronger than the first time. Thanks, friends, for recommending it!

Success, but not the winner!

Alright, here are the results. Well, we're still waiting for my Mom to send hers in, but that's nothing new:) I know I didn't win this week's weigh-in, but I know I was only a tenth of a pound different than my sister, who may win, so that's not too bad! Let's just say the gals trumped the guys this week:) I've decided to post my actual pounds lost on this blog, it's way more fun than percentages! So, from last Saturday's initial weigh-in, I've lost 3.2 pounds!

I really like weighing in on Friday mornings instead of Mondays, its gives a little room to have fun on the weekends:) So, what I'm planning on doing is keeping everything up (eating right and exercising) over the weekends, but if we have something fun planned that we know will involve a little extra eating, I'll plan for it and allow myself a little wiggle room.

Things I did this week to encourage weight loss are as follows:

1) Got back to the gym (but not very much, I'm going again this morning, but only made it there on Weds. this week). I would like to get there 3 mornings a week (usually MWF) and do a 40-45 min. workout each time. I will supplement this with other exercise such as walking/jogging outside and DVD workouts at home.

2) Got super structured with my eating. I am a scheduler type of person and do much better when I actually schedule in eating. If it's not time to be eating, I'm not, and vice versa. Really helps with the grabbing something every time I feel the slightest hunger pain! Which is another thing I have to do in order to lost weight, I have to be able to recognize true hunger from just being bored or needing a quick energy boost.

3) One of my meals, either lunch or dinner, is a salad meal of some sort. Just a trick I've learned, but not followed too strict this week, is that if you eat your larger meal at lunch and then settle for a light/salad type of meal at dinner, you are guaranteed to lost weight. Going to bed with that slight hunger is also helpful (not as much fun, but helpful!). Trust me, don't give in to the late night eating! Drink a cup of tea or anything low calorie to get you through, and you'll be fine.

4) Another trick is don't wear your loosest clothes, particularly loose pants, when you're trying to lost weight. I have a range of 3 different sizes in my closet and what I like to do is have a "goal" pair of jeans always hanging there to remind me where I know I can get. I may have to do some shopping, though, as the jeans that are in my smallest size aren't particularly in style anymore! Yeah, it's been awhile!

That's all I have for this week, it will be interesting to see what this next week brings!

Routine is my friend:)

I have found that getting back into a daily/weekly routine has been good for me. Today was my first real day of the journey and I have to say it's going pretty well. From my initial weigh-in on Sat. morning, I'm down 1.8 pounds, yay! I typically drop the first 5 pounds pretty quickly, especially if I haven't been watching my weight (as in the Holiday Season!!!) and then suddenly start cutting calories. One thing I was reminded of was that I need to take my measurements so that when I start to plateau weight-wise, I'll still have inches to focus on:) Of course, I forgot to do that again today, I need to find my measuring tape in my sewing kit and then I'll do it. So, family, if you're reading this, you may want to do the same! Hope things are going well for you guys, too! 4 more days till "report" time!!!

Here We Go Again!

I have been battling the same 20-30 pounds for the last 10-12 years and I'm sick of it!!! I have lost this weight before pre and post pregnancies, using commercial diet programs, you name it! And the frustrating thing is that I know I can do it, I just need to buckle down and do it!

Last year at this same time of year, my family (husband, parents, and sister) and I came up with the idea to do a Biggest Loser Competition where we would weigh in each week and share our percentages of weight loss with each other. The clincher was that our weigh-ins were on Monday mornings, which was extremely difficult! Last year I started out pretty strong, losing about 15 pounds from the time we started. However, I know there was a point where I just gave up, got busy with life, you know the rest!

I am hoping that by blogging my results and using the blog as a sort of journal will help keep me accountable!

The competition will run from tomorrow (1-02-10) through June. Tomorrow morning I will get on the scale, record my weight, and officially start my weight-loss journey. I probably won't start my routine (diet plan and exercise routine) until Monday. Then, our first weigh-in will be on Friday of next week. My family will share with each other through emails what our weight loss percentages are and we'll follow this same routine until the competition ends. One person will be declared the Biggest Loser, hopefully it's me!!! Wish me luck!