First, here is my Hot 100 update for week 5 (I think). I had a better couple of days Wednesday and Thursday in the food realm but not perfect ones. To think I'm capable of perfection in any endeavor is pretty grandiose. Though I have had perfect abstinence from demon alcohol for 19+ years, though I've not done one single day of it alone. Anyway -
1) Limit calories to 1700/day. I haven't been tracking. Last week I said I wasn't going to because it just made me crazy and because Miz doesn't track (at least now). Well, Miz lost her weight many years ago and is an icon in the weight loss and fitness realm and described how and what she eats that keeps her in top form. I currently bear ZERO resemblance to Miz in any way, other that being human, so that was a bit of a Now I'm thinking I need to do it, and maybe in a forum like Spark People. My best guess is that I had maybe 1-2 out of 7 days of 1700 cal. max intake. Guessing is bullshit and I know it. I'll talk about that more after the update.
2) Exercise at least 20 mins 6 days/week. I did 4/7.
3) Honest reporting and 100% accountability here. Yes.
4) Weigh in Fridays only. I weighed 208 this morning. Up 2 pounds from last week. I also weighed on Monday after getting home from Atlanta where I thought I'd had a reasonable food intake. Was 210 then. So cheated and weighed once between Fridays.
5) Stay in challenge to the end. Still here.
6) No dinner out Thursday night before weigh in. Ate at home, but had PB&J for dinner, followed by ice cream.
Marginal week, but I ended up today in better shape according to the scale than I feared.
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So regarding tracking - I know a lot of bloggers use various on line tools for tracking. I used Spark people in the past for a short time and it seemed to take forever to enter in amounts and figure out their system. But I love the idea that I can use the data and chart trends, etc - with calories as well as weight. What do you use for tracking? I also have a calorie counting book that is very comprehensive, including restaurants and such. It requires a notebook and pen, but I don't mind. I really see I need to do something to stay within the lines. I'd love to hear what works for those of you who do this.
My other not so good news is that my left knee has started hurting, in a different place than when I had my torn meniscus. It was minimal on Monday and has slowly increased and shifted from just behind the knee toward the inside (medial), but has shifted to being more on the actual side of the knee. It's not awful at all, but bothersome, and concerning because I don't want to start in with knee drama again. I'm using ibuprofen and ice, but am still walking a lot because I can do it without discomfort. Anyway - If it lasts for more than a week and a half, I'll check in with the Orthopedic doc.
I'm almost positive I'm going to Washington DC tomorrow for Jon Stewart's Rally To Restore Sanity. My son and a friend are going and he gave me the nod about hanging out with them all day. I was given a free ticket for a motor coach ride from Wilmington that takes you right to the DC Mall. It'll be a long exhausting day, but I figure I can read or sleep on the bus both ways. It pretty much depends on how my knee is feeling.
That's it for me...if I don't go to DC, I'll post tomorrow, otherwise it will be Sunday. I have clean healthy food planned and on hand for all day today, and want to get at least my 20 minutes in walking. I hope everyone has a great weekend. And I have to add that I hope I begin to morph into a weight loss blogger SUCCESS STORY. I really want to get this weight off and have been giving a lot of thought to getting myself on track and stopping the self pummeling I do when I have a "bad" day. One thing I know for sure (thanks, Oprah) is that taking the best care of myself is not a result of self hate. It has to come from self love and self respect.
I use SparkPeople. It is hard to figure it out at first, but once you get onto it and get your own list of favorites going--it takes seconds to track.
ReplyDeleteI like that I can enter in whatever amount I eat and SP figures out the rest. I don't have to decide how my 4 oz stacks up against the cal counting book's 1/4 cup, etc.
In those instances when no drop down measuring unit fits, there's a little conversion button to the right on the add a food page. If you click it, you can convert ounces to grams, for instance. Almost all food entries have a grams option.
Anyway, once you push past the initial tedium, it's a breeze. I like the Protein/Fat/Carb ratio it shuffles out, too.
Your comments re Miz and your cmparison to her, made me lol. Chuckle. Thanks for that--I so identify!
Have fun at DC and I hope your knee gets okay!
Deb
I've used Fitday for years (the free version) and I like it well enough.
ReplyDeleteHave fun at the rally!
When I track I use fitday, the free version as well. It gets faster when you have entered stuff already. I use it for exercise and weight too.
ReplyDeleteMiz. She is in a class by herself:) I got a kick out of reading her post about what she eats every day and also am so not like her. But I am very much like you, my bloggy friend:) Even to the point of quoting Oprah this week.
I hope your knee is okay. Let's you and I rock the challenge next week:)
I was using SparkPeole in '06-'07 and lost 35 pounds, but have gained it back so I just signed up again last week.
ReplyDeleteI am terrible at tracking food and exercise, can't help you there, sorry!
My knee is hurting in the back too, just left of center. It's hard for me to put weight on it when I've been sitting, and takes some walking to work it out. Don't know what's causing it.
I've used a number of online tracking and I'm with you, it just takes too long and I tend to forget. I keep a notebook at my desk (I'm home all day) and when I track, I just write it down. I generally know how many calories things are, if I don't, I consult calorieking.com. That's how I get the calories for my recipes on my recipe blog. There is just SO much to do all day that it is hard! Keep at it! Stay positive!
ReplyDeleteI use SparkPeople to look up the calorie counts of something I don't know...like I used it this week for butternut squash and sweet potatoes...used it last week to look up a pear. Otherwise, I just keep a little notepad and pen on my desk at work and jot everything down on it. By the end of the day, I usually have 200-300 cals left for dinner....so I know my limit when I get home to fix dinner....which is usually something like an egg white scramble. Sorry to hear about the knee...I certainly hope the pain goes away soon and doesn't require an orthopaedic visit.....and you couldn't pay me to go to Jon Stewart's rally...but that's the Repub in me talking, lol....have a great weekend girl...love ya'. :)
ReplyDeleteWhen I track I use pen and paper, it is easier than any on line program I have tried. Sometimes old school works best for some of us!
ReplyDeleteHang in there Leslie you will achieve your goals yet!
I hope you get to go to the Rally, it looks like a good time!
What a pity about your knee, do take care of it and see your Doctor if things don't improve soon.
Leslie, I've just started using caloriecount.com you do have to input your food, but it's not too labor intensive. I like it because it gives you a good idea on how you're doing on meeting your nutritional needs as well as toting up your calories. I don't consider myself a calorie counter, but I'm willing to do it for a while to see how I'm doing and then, later, may use it to spot check my intake. I like that it suggests what my daily calories shd be, too. Mine was 1400, which is pretty reasonable, I think.
ReplyDeleteSorry about your knee. Hope it feels miraculously fine starting right now.
We're expecting crisp fall weather here (7 miles from DC) so bring a jacket and sunglasses.
I use MyPlate at livestrong.com and absolutely love it. I couldn't get into SparkPeople. I find MyPlate is very easy and has just about everything I can imagine in terms of tracking. Check it out...perhaps it'll help?
ReplyDeleteI am sorry to read about your knee again. It sure has been a problem for you over the last year.
ReplyDeleteI hope you had a great day today!
OH, the knee thing. Getting older is so much harder than I thought it would be!!
ReplyDeleteThe rally sounds like fun. Hope to read that you went.
Pencil and paper works for me on tracking. The tools don't matter, it's the physical (mental) labor of doing it. That's where I have my trouble.
Let's stick this out; we can do it! It's just takes us a little longer to get on the bus.
OK, I meant "It just takes us a little longer..."
ReplyDeleteAfter the knees, grammar and spelling are the next things to go.....
How exciting about going to DC! I used to live in Virginia, and used to go to Georgetown to party - fun school!
ReplyDeleteI use caloriecount.com - I have some dislikes with it though - I can't seem to find products not on their system and end up having to add them over and over.
That being said, I rely on that to see how many carbs I eat to figure out my insulin - and my blood sugar numbers average between 100 and 119 - so I must be doing something right! :D
I keep track of my weight loss using a ticker on my website, and a graph that is also on my website...mostly because I like the visual. I've never charted my food intake, but then it was never really necessary for me. I know what I eat. And these days I tend to get sick after a few bites of food due to some meds that I'm taking...so I KNOW that I'm around 1000 calories per day. Some people need to track food, some don't...some track water, some don't...it's whatever works for YOU. :)
ReplyDeleteUsed pen and paper for years. Then as I found myself on a computer more, I also found Fitday. Used that for quite a while, until I discovered Sparkpeople in 2007. Which I still use even when I'm not tracking because they have the recipe calculator. I love that I can input the recipes I make all the time and it gives me the info on a portion. Love it. It's super easy for me to track now because over the 3 years I've input tons of custom foods and recipes. Yes, it takes a bit, but if you want to know, it's worth it.
ReplyDeleteI hope the knee gets feeling better soon!
ReplyDelete