Friday Fitness: 9 Week Control Freak End of Phase 1

And that's a wrap on Phase 1!

These workouts really do fly by fast, and even though this is my third time doing it, I still find the workouts to be fun. Looking back at the first round I did back in January I am improving all around. I'm using heavier weights, getting in more rounds and reps, and feeling more flexible (thanks evening stretches!)

I haven't lost any weight (and I haven't busted out the measuring tape in a bit so I have no idea about inches) but I feel like I may be at the maintenance point of my life. 

If you read my earlier post, you know that I've been struggling with that 2 pound difference between the number where my body seems to be living right now, and the number I have in my head. But this week I decided to ease up on myself and switch to maintenance mode. So I guess, I'm at "goal" - at least for now.

But regardless of what the scale says, I'm so happy with what my body can do. I'm feeling sore in all the right places and my fitness is improving.

I will say this about the program as it's written - this week I once again moved my rest days so that they are both on the weekend - meaning I did a workout every day M-F. I still don't like it lol. Like I said last week - I feel like the rest days are in the right place for a reason and I am definitely more sore doing all the workouts five days in a row. But for now, with the summer starting to pick up, it's looking like I'll want to keep my weekends open, so M-F it will have to be. I will probably get used it...

I'm really looking forward to phase two next week!

Wednesday Weekly: How to create goals future you will actually do

Welcome to my Wednesday Weekly post in which I pontificate about the WW weekly topic.

In this week's meetings we are discussing making goals that you will actually achieve. 

I think we can all relate, right? We set a goal, we want to see it to the end, we have the best of intentions, and then life happens, old habits happen, and we never get to where we want to be, or we find ourselves even further away than when we started in the first place. 

So what's to be done?

WW has some tips to get around these obstacles. You can read about them here:

https://www.weightwatchers.com/us/m/cms/article/how-create-goals-future-you-will-actually-do

They also talk about the intention-action gap - meaning, the disconnect between what you want to do and what you actually do. WW says that by having a realistic goal and breaking into small steps it will be more likely you'll achieve it. 

They also recommend visualizing how you will feel when you achieve your goal, and visualizing how you will respond to any obstacles can help you as well.

This is all well and good, so let's come up with some concrete examples to help us out. I'll share some real world examples that have worked, and not worked, for me.

Exercise

These tips have helped me to make exercise a permanent part of my routine. My goal was simple - I wanted to work out three days a week (though now I'm up to 5-7 depending on the workout program that I'm doing on BOD). I knew that if I waited until after work I'd be too tired so I wanted to workout at 5 am before work. I also knew that I was not a morning person and a chronic snoozer. So what small steps did I take to make this happen? I put my alarm across the room so I had to physically get up out of bed to turn it off. Then I put my workout clothes right next to my alarm so I'd be ready to go in the morning. I set up a dedicated workout space. These were all very helpful in reaching my goal. But, what about the mornings where I just didn't feel like it? The alarm would go off, I'd walk across the room to get it and seriously think about going right back to bed. I would take a moment and visualize how good it feels to finish a good workout. I used to joke that I wish they could put that feeling in a bottle so I could take it out and smell it whenever I needed that little boost of motivation. But really thinking about the end result was really helpful in keeping me going on the mornings I just didn't feel like it. And now, it's a habit. It has become one of those things I do like taking a shower. But it could easily slip away - I have to continue to choose to make it a priority for myself. 

Social Eating

This is a goal that's hit or miss for me. When I have a goal to control my food choices at a social gathering - whether it's eating out or a party - the first thing I'll do is try to figure out what's being served. If it's a restaurant I'll look up the menu ahead of time. If it's a party, depending on how well I know the host I'll flat out ask what's being served, and I'll usually bring something that I won't mind eating. But sometimes, even though I try to visualize myself staying in control of my food choices, or I'll visualize saying no thanks to something, but sometimes it still goes awry. I know what to do, but at some point along the way I'll let go of the goal and just enjoy myself. Of course, this usually results in my beating myself up over it. Maybe I should try to visualize how pissed off I'll be if I stray from my plan, instead of trying to visualize carrying out my plan, lol. Of course, there are times when my goal is not not track a thing and just eat (WDW vacay and LB cookie party I'm looking at you!). And that's ok too. Sometimes, that's the goal that works!

Water

This is a goal that I consistently miss. They say you should drink 1/2 your body weight in water. For me, that's about 66 oz. So what small steps did I take? I bought fun, color changing water bottles, with a straw (it's easier to suck down water through a straw). I downloaded a cute little app that reminds me to drink water. Every two hours my phone alerts me. And yet, every day I fall short by about half of my goal. I tried visualizing how I'd feel reaching my goal - but that's the thing - I don't feel very impressed or satisfied. If I do reach my goal (because some days I do), I'm not super excited or proud. I'm just like "That's nice". So maybe this goal isn't very relevant to me. Which now has me thinking, why is it a goal? Maybe I should just drink when I'm thirsty and leave it at that.

At the end of the day, I think goals need to align with your priorities. If you want something bad enough, you'll find a way. If you don't want it, you'll find an excuse.

Monday Weigh In/Weekend Confession: Mindset Edition

Well, it certainly has been a hot minute since I was last here hasn't it? But let's do this thing!

Last Week: 134.9

This Week: 133.4

Difference: -1.5 pounds

Maintenance: Success!

I've been wanting to blog again for a bit, but finding the time has been not so easy. However - I have lots on my mind to get out so here goes.

I've been working towards getting back to a goal weight for over a year now. I can't even remotely remember when the last time I weighed 131 was. Sometime in the fall of 2019 I think... I know I was about 135-136 in March 2020 when everything shut down. And then with the pandemic, I fell back into a lot of bad habits with food, and started some new ones with drinking, and I found myself back up to about 145-146 in December of 2020.

I had that moment in my closest where I said to myself, "Man, will anything in here even fit me??" And that's when I said enough is enough. I ordered a new Beachbody program and started Monday 1/11.

I told myself I was going to get my nutrition under control and get back to 131. (Working out certainly wasn't my issue. I had completed two 6 week programs and a 4 week program on BOD without missing a day). I've been good - perfectly imperfect, but more days where I'm following the program than not.

So how did I come up with 131? Well, one day, probably back in the spring of 2019 (or maybe the fall of 2018?) I was driving to work and thinking how I felt really good in my body that day. I felt thin, strong, my clothes fit well... it was that goal feeling, ya know? So, I looked back on my weigh in that day and I was 131 and change. So that's how I came up with that number.

In January of this year I was 146 and I've been slowly edging my way down. I have not been perfect, but I have been trying. And I've been close recently. For a about a month or so I've been around 133.

And it got me thinking - why am I obsessed with these last two pounds? And is that really my goal? 

First of all, what are these two pounds going to give me? Will I really feel that different? I mean, I'm at a healthy BMI, I'm a comfortable size 6 (everything in my closest fits again), I'm strong, I'm fit - and getting stronger and fitter every day... I can see my abs... What will I gain by losing 2 pounds other than the satisfaction of that number? 

Second of all, is that really my goal? If I think about it, over the years, when I felt my best - my thinnest, fittest, happiest in my body, best - I was more like 124 pounds. But is that really reasonable and achievable at the age of 45? Is it necessary? 

Coming to terms with being a size 6 instead of a 2/4 is hard. It's like - I know I'm healthy. I know many women would kill to be where I am in this journey. It's just... It's hard to get past that mindset. 

I dunno. This is where my mental head space has been lately... It's been a hard struggle. And I'm still trying to process all of this. Do I really need those two pounds? Or should I just shift back to maintenance mode now? Will that make my happy? Or will I still subconsciously step on the scale each morning hoping for something different? And how will I find balance between wanting to enjoy things without always feeling like I need to be overly restrictive (and I know that it's a lifestyle and not a diet, but honestly there are times when I feel like if I'm not following some sort of plan with tracking and portion control then I just swing to the other side of the pendulum and the weight comes back on).

Which - brings me to my weekend confession:

Bless me Jean Nidetch for I have gone off program!

At the end of the week I finished with negative -68 points (and yes, I used my 67 FitPoints and 28 Weekly Points!). See this is what I was saying before - the balance between living life and enjoying the food and drink and staying at a goal weight that will keep me in my current pants size.

It really started at the beginning of the week with indulging in an extra glass of wine with dinner. Whoops, no blue dot. And then it continued the rest of the week. It also didn't help that I knew we were getting take out on Friday so it kind of put me in the mindset of "well, I'm going negative anyway, may as well do it properly". There was a Starbucks stop on Friday, in addition to the take out. Then, my daughter wanted to bake cinnamon buns (by herself!), which was awesome, but then of course I ate them because they were there. And then, sitting pool side in the summer is where my will power crumbles. I need to get more fresh mint and go back to making my mock-tails so that I'm not just drinking all day in the sun. For one, I sleep like crap when I drink too much, and two, it makes for a really rough workout at 5 am the next morning.

Well, that's all for this week. If you've read this far, thanks for listening to my random ramblings. Have a great week!

Friday Fitness: 9 Week Control Freak + (unpaid) She Fit Bra review

Two weeks down and 7 to go!

This morning I completed my second week of my third round #9WCF and here are some thoughts - 

In most ways I made improvements. Either I increased the weight I used, increased my speed in density and Tabata rounds, or both. The one thing I did differently was to move my rest day from Thursday to Saturday effectively meaning that I did a workout straight through Monday - Friday.

I did not like it lol. When I did my first two rounds I took the rest days as prescribed by the calendar and I know they are in the right place at the right time. This week my body felt fatigued going into Thursday and Friday. I was thinking that for the summer I might do M-F and take the weekends off for boat/beach/backyard BBQ stuff, but now I'm not so sure lol. I will need to try it again next week though because I have another busy weekend ahead.

You'd think I'd be getting bored of these but I'm totally not! I love the format of the workouts (they go so FAST) and I'm loving the gains in strength that I am making. I am doing shoulder fly's with 10 pound weights - something that was inconceivable just a year ago.

Now, on to item number 2 - my totally unpaid, non-monetized review of my She Fit sports bra.

I will admit that I've been seeing these pop up in my social media feed for quite some time. I even saw their episode on an old rerun of Shark Tank. But when I saw the price tag I balked. They are not cheap, not even a little. And I thought, they look good, but geez, are they worth it?

So I tried to find other, less expensive sports bras, none of them being really great, but they were doing the job.

Then a friend of mine was like - oh yeah, She Fit is awesome and they are pricey but worth it! They are the only sports bra I will wear. 

Ok, that was a glowing endorsement so I figured I'd try one and see if I liked it or not. They have a money back guarantee so it was minimal risk if it sucked.

Fast forward to today where I now own 5 - yes 5! - of them! And my friends was right. They're the best. Amazing support, fully adjustable (so if I happen to gain a few pounds or lose a few more they will still fit), and easy to clean (they even come with their own laundry bag for safe washing machine use!).

All in all I definitely recommend them. They are worth the hype for sure. 

Friday Fitness: #9wcf Off the Wall, Phase 3, Week 3

 Wow! I have one more workout to go and I'll have finished 9 weeks of Off  the Wall!

Here are my reflections on the program as a whole.

1 - I definitely got stronger. Moves that were challenging at the beginning are not so much anymore. I was able to complete more rounds and reps week after week.

2 - Repeating the workouts was beneficial in that I could truly compare week to week the gains I'd made in strength and stamina. 

3 - Repeating the workouts was a bit boring by week 3. BOD has spoiled me with real time workouts.

4 - You are sore! Because the moves are alllllll with dumbbells, you don't put the weights down and you definitely feel more DOMS

5 - I can move faster with Off the Wall than the original #9wcf because you're not fumbling around with the equipment as much.

6 - I like the equipment better. I like the variety and the different kind of challenge it brings to the program.

But all in all I really enjoyed the program because I really like the DCT-T style of training. The workouts are fun and fast, and you don't really realize how much you worked until you feel it the next day. Then you stop and do the math and say "Oh, I did six rounds of 10 reps of Buddha squats - that's like 60 Buddha squats in 12 minutes!" Plus the other four moves you did in those rounds! You're working a LOT in a short amount of time. It really is genius. 

When I did Morning Meltdown, most days I felt like I had to double up, or I wasn't really getting a good workout for the day (or at least not good enough to justify wrestling into my sports bra lol). With #9wcf, those 30 minutes leave me on the floor and it's definitely enough. The only days I think I might add on with the next round (yes, I'm repeating it for another 9 weeks!) is adding a bonus ab workout to the tabata days. And that's only because I finally feel like I'm strong enough to actually do something else after tabata. Especially since in the original phase one has a reverse tabata.

The next round will be back to the original "on the wall" #9wcf. I'm looking forward to going back to the equipment. The first time I did the original back in January, I used the lighter resistance band and kept my step on the lowest level for all of phase 1 and some of phase 2. This time, I'm starting with the heavier band, and I have an even heavier band on deck. And, I'll be starting with the step on the third and highest level right from day 1. 

If you're a BOD subscriber I highly recommend checking out #9wcf. Whether you do the original or Off the Wall, you're going to get a great workout.

Monday Weigh In/Weekend Confessional: Celebration Edition

Good morning and happy Monday!

Let's start w/ the stats:

Last Week: 138.1
This Week: 139.8
Difference: +1.7

Whoops!

I'm actually thinking a lot of that is water weight. Sunday morning I weighed in at 137.6 - you can't gain two pounds overnight and we ate out last night and the food was very salty. And I feel bloated - my rings are tight...

Which leads me to the weekend confessional:

Bless me Jean Neditch for I have gone off program!

Friday started out fine - I had my plan and my points all set for a blue dot! Until... hubby opened a second bottle of wine after dinner, and, well, you know how that goes!

Saturday I also had a plan and it went to hell when I dove head first into a 1/2 pint of Peppermint Patty ice cream that I had left over in the freezer. The good news is - the ice cream is no longer there to tempt me. The bad news is - I got rid of it by eating it and it was 28 points.

See I wanted to stick to my points Friday and Saturday because I knew Sunday would be a high point day - We had our annual barrel tasting at our favorite local winery (if you're not familiar with barrel tastings, what they do is take you into the cellar and let you taste the wines while they're still in the barrel. They're not quite ready to be bottled yet, but you can get an idea of what they will be like and then you can order them now for the future when they are bottled, at a discount), so there were lots of points for the wine tastings. And then we went out to a local steak place to celebrate a friends birthday for dinner. Of course, restaurant meals are higher in points in general. I had too much wine, lobster bisque, shrimp with risotto and a slice of cake to celebrate the day. I totaled it up to be about 90 point day. Yeah...

So that was my weekend. The rest of the week before that was awesome - stayed in my points all day every day and saw a loss at my workshop.

So for this week I have a plan to stay in my points and get those blue dots. I want to get five workouts in Monday - Friday (I'm already behind on that one though - I was too hungover to work out at 5 am this morning and I'll have to try to squeeze it in later on if I can). I made zero point burrito bowls for lunch this week and I have a 1 SP salsa to put on top of it. Breakfasts this week will vary depending on what I'm making for dinner but today it was greek yogurt, banana and a protein shake for 4 sp.

I know what to do, I just have to do it.

I can do it. I deserve to do it. I deserve my health. I deserve to feel good about my body.

Happy Anniversary.

This month will mark 19 years since I've reached my goal weight with WW.

Wow. 19 Years.

I wish I could remember the date I stepped on that scale. I don't. I'm not always good with remembering anniversaries like that.

I remember two weeks prior I was sooooooo close and I thought "Next week, I'll be at goal!" But then that next week I only lost 0.2 lol. The universe heard me and thought it'd be fun to mess with me I guess.

But the week after that I did make it to goal. My leader (who, incidentally is still my leader today) brought me to the front of the room and asked me to share my journey with the group. What made me walk through the door that first day. How has my life changed? What did I think were the most significant habits that made me successful? I remember crying.

So, as I sit here 19 years later, I'm reflecting on how much has changed since then, and how much has stayed the same.

First the same:

I still go to my workshops.

I still track my food most days.

I still weigh and measure my portions most days.

I still look up the points of foods I'm going to eat.

I still plan my days and weeks so I can stay on track.

I still meal prep and food shop.

You see, the things you did to lose the weight are the same things you need to do in order to maintain. So for the most part, I am, and always will be, a weight watcher at heart (I don't care what they rename it).

Now, the different:

My why has shifted. No longer is maintenance about cute clothes and a bikini body. I want to be healthy and strong for the long haul. I want to ward off age related diseases that are exacerbated by obesity. I want to not only live a long life, but I want to enjoy it. I want to be able to take my future grandchildren to Disney without having to rent a scooter to keep up with them. (Don't get me wrong, the cute clothes and the bikini body are nice to have - but it's not what drives my overall daily decisions about food and activity).

My goal weight is now 6 pound higher. When I joined I was 24. I'm now over forty. And I've had a child. My current weight goal is a realistic expectation of what I can maintain without going crazy and it gives me some wiggle room to live and enjoy a glass of wine with dinner. It took a long time to get to the headspace where I was ok with this. But I've finally, truly accepted that it's OK to be a size six instead of a size four.

So, the big question I get a lot is: "Have you kept it off all that time?"

No. No I have not.

Not counting my pregnancy, there have be several other times in the last 19 years where I have shifted my priorities away from my health and wellness and focused on other things. When that's happened, I stop tracking, stop going to workshops, stop working out, and - naturally - I gain some of the weight back.

Thankfully, I've never gained it all back. Of the 33 pounds I initially lost, the most I'd ever gained back was about 20. I usually try to stop it somewhere between 5 and 10 pounds gained. That's when the clothes stop fitting, and I go back to workshops, go back to basics (tracking, weighing, measuring, planning and meal prep) and get my butt back in shape.

So, what will the next 19 years be like? Hopefully, much of the same. Do I expect to be perfect? Nope. Will I always go back to WW when I stray? You bet. No matter what life brings, this will always be a part of me.

Thank you WW for giving me the knowledge and the tools to change my life.