The reality of 8-12 weeks of NO RUNNING is really hitting me hard right now. Ever since Monday…uh yesterday. I guess it’s because my Seattle RnR spectating adventure is over, I guess.
I wanted to have fun running 5Ks and 10Ks this summer. I was really looking forward to it. And now I’m stuck in the hot gym staring at infomercials at 5:30 a.m. on the elliptical and wondering why the heck some people think it’s a good idea to wear sweats on the treadmill. So you can sweat out all your water and fool the scale? Really? Does it matter that much? It’s not like you’re on The Biggest Loser or anything.
Anyway, I’m being a Negative Nancy again.
Since I can’t run, I decided that I should make this The Summer of Weight Loss, sort of like The Summer of George, but not. Unfortunately, the calorie-counting-exercise-equation is not getting me the results I feel it should. I’ll lose a little, gain a little, lose a little, gain a little, and basically just stay the same. I’ve only lost 3 pounds in 2 months. And it’s not like I’m sitting around doing nothing, you know?
So I’m falling back on my old pal, Weight Watchers (WW). It has always worked for me. I even lost 40 pounds one year and never exercised (which I don’t recommend because now I know that eating right is only part of being healthy; you need to exercise for overall health). I’ve never been able to do WW on my own, though. But I can’t afford the gym and a WW membership, so I am going to try it on my own again. I think I am more motivated, smarter and better focused now.
I don’t just want to lose weight to lose weight. I want to be lighter on my feet for when I do get to run again, hopefully in September in time for Team Will Run for Ice Cream at the You Go Girl! half mary or 10K, which I am running (I do already have the shirt and everything).
Anyway, I am very proud of the awesome food-tracker, weight-tracker Excel spreadsheet I made yesterday. It has all kinds of formulas to help me keep track of my points. I don’t usually do spreadsheets. But it’s pretty kick-ass, if I do say so myself.
It has automatic dates, it automatically adds up my points, subtracts from my weekly extra points automatically if I need to use them, incorporates points I earn exercising and will automatically show me how much weight I’ve lost or gained each week.
So, okay, when I looked at how many points I get each day (22), I got nervous before remembering I get an extra 35 to use at will throughout the week and also the ones I earn from exercise. I also realized I’ve been eating too much to lose weight.
I am 5’ and 7-1/2” (the ½ counts!) tall and I currently weigh 169. I want to weigh 140 – the high end of what’s recommended for my height and body type. I added a new tracker on the right-hand side of the blog so you can see I have 29 pounds to go.
I started off The Summer of Weight Loss (SOWL) officially this morning (even though I sort of followed the plan yesterday) with a banana (-2 points) before 40 minutes of vigorous ellipticalling (+5). That’s no different than what I’ve been doing, but I did NOT have my Zone Perfect chocolate bar (which is 4 points!) in the car on the way to work. I drank water and drip coffee (-.5 for a Tablespoon of Half and Half), and made the 25-minute drive to work just fine.
Then I got started right away writing copy for a new a project, and finally at about 8:45, I got hungry for breakfast. I had a Thomas Whole Wheat bagel thin (-1) with 1 Tablespoon of Nutella spread on it (-2) and a half-cup of diced fresh strawberries (-.5). I put the strawberries on the bagel with the Nutella and it was delish! I had another cup of coffee, though, so I’m down for Coffee Mate creamer (-1).
For lunch: a salad and a serving of the leftover WW-recipe Mac ‘N’ Cheese that I made a few days ago. I have no idea what’s for dinner. I am not as organized this week as I was last week.
And don’t worry, I’m not always going to be listing my food. It’s just that I’m kicking off the SOWL today. Let’s hope for some results on Monday when I weigh in for the first time.
***
I am grateful for:
-Running and bloggy friends who include me in running events even when I’m not running.
-The Internet.
-That Mr. T’s wonderful health plan will cover my custom orthotics.
-Ibuprofin.
19 comments
Good for you, taking on all of this accountability and outting it ALL out there. I'm with you on wanting (neeeeeeding) to shed some pounds this summer… just need t put a stop to this post-marathon binge first. ;)I'm a Weight Watchers Lifetime Member… it works. And YES, the 1/2″ counts! LOL!
Picking new goals is the perfect way to stay focused and get through the time off running, its the only way I survived.And as far as the pool running goes…I do it in our neighborhood pool, which is thankfully deep enough. I've been going in the evening and we pretty much have it to ourselves. I'm not sure what the etiquette is for the gym, but I bet you could as the front desk and they could help. 🙂
I am with you on the SOWL! I need to do that also. Not being able to run has makes a huge difference, even still working out 5x a week. Your spreadsheet sounds awesome! I need something like that.
I would also love for this to be the SOWL, but considering that I had to wipe drool off my keyboard after just reading about your breakfast, I'm thinking I have a battle ahead of me. Your stats & end weight are very similar to mine (although I have made headway from my original starting weight since I've been at it two years or so)… but your plan is far more organized!!
Good luck with everything! I swear…I could exercise forever, but the whole eating thing ALWAYS screws me! Last July, my hubby bought me the bodybugg and I lost almost 15 pounds in 3 months…I did really well with it. But I stopped using it once I started training for my half marathon because i figured I needed to be eating more for all the extra energy I was going to be expending….well, sadly, I have lost ZERO weight since training started in November…I actually GAINED 3 pounds! BOO! But I have started wearing it again and “TRYING” to imput all my food. I would love to lose about 7 or 8 pounds…so I AM WITH YOU GIRL! SOWL!!!!!!!!!! Accountability is huge for me, so do you want to schedule an offical weigh in day? 😉
Hey Kerrie!I also do WW, for the same reason! I have all of the current information if you want it! Also, am shorter than you and slightly smaller, and my points are 24. I was supposed to change my points when I went down, but my leader said that because I am so active, not to lower the points immediately. So, I am still at 24 points, even though I have lost 12 lbs. I should be down to 23. If you want more information on the current system let me know!I also did the eat right and lose weight without exercise method a few years back! I lost 35 lbs, but wasn't in shape!
I wish you the very best in your weightloss journey. It is such a tough road. You can do it though! Hang in there mama!
I'm really excited to read about this part of your journey. I have about 30-40lbs left to lose and I'm in the same up and down struggle you are. I can't wait until the races I scheduled are over so I can slap myself back into weight loss mode!
Hopefully, you've noticed that you've got a bloglist full of number geeks – list away with the food and the points!! Cheers to your success on the SOWL!
Good luck with WW! So you are getting orthotics?! That should be great for your feet / hips. Good news!
WW sounds so hard!!! I guess once you have it figured out though it might not be??? Good luck with it! And any weight loss translates to much faster times running!! And it will be easier on those shins of yours too! So this is an EXCELLENT idea Kerrie!!! And as far as the You Go Girl, I was going to do it but the $90 is a bit too much for me so I will be the official race photog and cheerleader for that one!! Or the Race Wrangler if you will!! Can't wait!!!!
from the looks of some of the comments, it might be worth a shot to make it an official MvsM feature? Looks like some readers want to join you on your SOWL.How much longer are you on the sidelines from running?
I should join you on this. I have been wanting to lose 10-15 lbs for a least a year now and the running just doesn't take it off by itself. What I did notice a couple of months ago is when I decreased my running after a 1/2 marathon, I lost like 5 lbs in a week. Well, it was because I wasn't as hungry as when I run consistently. So not fair….
Interesting and educative post. I know losing those pounds are extremely difficult but if you put your mind to it, I know it will be as easy as a pie. Check out this weight loss supplements Acai Berry Pure . It works!
Awesome that hubby's insurance will cover the custom orthotics! Good news!Lately I have craved bowls of cereal which is really bad for my skin.Good luck with the WW!
I just started WW online this week. I realized I was over eating too. Not gaining but not loosing. So time to track track track. The first few days were daunting but I'm getting the swing of it. But I ate too many points at lunch so extra time on the bike today.
Sounds like a great plan…I love that…The Summer of Weightloss :)You will be so ready when you can get back to running. Good luck with WW, it's a great program!
I'm fully joining you in the Summer of Weightloss. I toyed with the idea of trying WW again, but I've been really good on my own this week so I'm going to weight it out (literally) before deciding if I'll jump back on that horse again. But for now, boo not being able to run, but yay for us trying to find other ways to shed pounds.
SOWL – I love it! Good luck! I'm fighting the battle of weight loss these days too, so I'll be watching you for my motivation! Mine is a lot easier – I can still run…..