SAM'S PROGRESS - 10kg weight loss goal

[Samantha Jean]

Back down to 67.4kg again today... at least I'm not going up. Rowing machine is still not fixed so did not do any exercise yesterday, the part that makes the strap retract is broken and we cannot fix it, might have to take it in somewhere. It's not a very good excuse I know, so I might just do some resistance training today instead until rower is going again. Am going to look into doing a body pump class once a week when fiance can watch the kiddies. I love body pump! ...for someone who doesn't like exercise.

[candycane]

hi samantha,

do you weigh yourself every day? I know some people do that because they feel it keeps them in check, but its probably more accurate to weigh yourself once a week or once a fortnight, and do measurements. This is because your weight fluctuates daily depending on fluid retention and things like that. Each to their own though i guess! i try to go by what i see in the mirror and how my clothes fit personally

goodluck, you seem to be going really well so far

[love to shop]

I used to weigh myself every day and found I was getting discouraged as it would go up and down...only weigh once or twice a week now.

The body pump class sounds good.

[Samantha Jean]

Yes I weigh myself each day for a few reasons. It does keep me in check & reminds me of my goal & gives me motivation (eg. if I am up since yesterday it makes me try harder to rectify & if I am down it encourages me to keep going & see if i can get down by anymore the next day).

The other reason is because I think it is great to understand how your body works... like why/when/how it fluctuates for example. I don't just say 'how did that happen', I think about why... did I eat something wrong the day before... did I eat too much salt & retain some water... did the 4 hours I spent shopping work like exercise... even bowl movements... maybe I'm not drinking enough water. I really think it helps to understand your body a bit better & why it does the things it does.

I certainly don't take the daily weight too seriously and I do take more notice of how much I have changed weekly. The great thing about it is that if you start going up you can reign it in a bit before it gets too far... one day can easily be rectified the next day, a week is a lot harder. Also when you get to the end of the week and have gained weight it is an awful blow, but if you a monitoring each day & understanding your body it is not so hard.

Also, say you did get down that week but the day before your weekly weigh in you went up, it is disheartening to think you haven't lost anything when you probably had. One day can be changed in one day.

I know a lot of people tell you not to weigh everyday & people do get discouraged when it goes up & down but I think it is good to try to understand why... seeking answers can only help. I think the secret to weight loss is about learning... learning how your body works & trying different things... everyone is so different... my opinion anyway, I'm certainly not an expert but it works for me.

[Samantha Jean]

Forgot... Today I was 67.6kg, ate full amount of calories yesterday... I'll probably stabilise on around 67 this week (Sunday weigh in) then hopefully drop down again the week after... that's what usually works for me.

I tend to slowly go up a bit on my calories through the week and maintain the weight I lost the previous week, then the following week reduce them back and lose some more weight and stabilise on that again the following week by slowly going up in calories again... Well that's the plan anyway, if it works it's a great idea. lol.

[Samantha Jean]

Today I was 67.0kg. Very happy with this... fingers crossed I stay around that tomorrow. Ate slightly under in calories yesterday & did a little yoga.

[Oliviasf]

Hey, well done Sam!! I've dropped to 67.4 kg too, don't know that I will get to 67 kg as fast but I've not been as good as I could have been
Fab results!

[Samantha Jean]

Thanks Oli, well at least we're doing something right, Congrats to you too.

I was 67.0kg again today and went up a bit from calories consumed yesterday but still under goal. So that's good... I know I can slowly go up on my calories to remain the same, then, once stabilised, drop them back again to lose some more weight. Not expecting to lose as much this week as last week though. Was 67.6 and today, Thursday, 67.0kg. Would be very happy to break into the 66s by weigh in day, Sunday. Is my fiancees 30th birthday this Saturday, so hoping to keep my willpower & not overindulge.

[candycane]

calorie cycling like what body builders do! they up their calorie intake 2 days per week by about 200 cals, so your body never goes into the 'you arent feeding me enough mode' good luck for your next weigh in

[Samantha Jean]

Yeah I read something about calorie shifting which is where I got the idea. Going up a couple of days per week one week, then going below a couple of days in the next week. Mixing it up so that your body does not catch on and try to retain your fat incase of famine. I think it should be helpful to people struggling to lose the last bit of weight or when they are already in the healthy weight range & it gets harder to budge. We'll see how it goes anyway. Thanks Candy.

[Oliviasf]

You're doing so well! I wanted to ask you how many calories / Kj you increase by on those days you up your intake. Do you eat more proteins or carbs or just anything? Ie. do you stick to 1200 cals, then up it to 1400 then drop down to 1000?
I would be interested to know if you or anyone else knows how long it takes for the body to get used to a certain calorie intake??

[Samantha Jean]

66.6kg today... Awesome! I finally broke into the 66s which was my goal for the week (weigh in Sunday).

Yeah no worries Oli, I think everyone is different, which is why it is important, I think, for people to understand their own bodies. Some people might take a few days, some a week or more for their body to click on. Mine is usually the second week. If I eat the same each day I will lose the first week, then stop losing the second week.

I have a daily goal of 1200cal/5016kj. I don't precisely say... I am going up by 200 cal today & down by 200 the next or anything. I mix it up without any pattern because I still feel that your body will catch on to this pattern... your body is very smart.

I have been using calorieking & my daily goals on that are:
Carbs: 149.2g
Fat: 36.5g
Protein: 110.4g
Fibre: 25.0g

I normally come under with everything, if I type something in before I eat it and my 'fat' for example goes over & gets a red box around it (CalorieKing Nutrition and Exercise Manager $45) I change my mind & eat something different.

I will look back at my days for the last week or 2 and record exactly how much I have had each day:

Wed 30/09/09 4242kj
Thurs 1/10/09 5405
Fri 2/10/09 3850
Sat 3/10/09 4829
Sun 4/10/09 3574
Mon 5/10/09 4028
Tues 6/10/09 4234
Wed 7/10/09 4331
Thurs 8/10/09 4967

I personally don't think it matters how much carb or protein you eat in terms of weight loss, however if you are aiming for a certain amount of kj proteins make you feel fuller for longer so you aren't as hungry and don't stuff it up. If you have strong willpower & only eat the amount you aim for it won't matter.

Summing up the kinds of foods I eat each day roughly include: Uncle Tobys Bran Plus cereal with trim milk, nestle diet no fat yoghurt (is quite low in kj in comparison) low fat jelly, little tins of low fat tuna (like johnwest tuns temptations tomato & onion), eggs, bacon, bread, little tins of champignons (79kj), thin sliced ham, diet coke, coffee. No Sugar on anything. Heaps of vegetables (broccoli, cauliflower, sweetpotato, potato, green beans, zucchini, corn, carrots, etc), bananas, tim tams occassionally, chocolate occassionally, Best dinners for least kj is probably steak & vegetables. 100g steak, overflowing with vegetables. Watermelon, salads with no cheese, light butter, low fat soups, green tea, vietnamese spring rolls for dinner (not the fried kind). Probably a lot more... all I can think of now.

Oh & I mentioned that I have been taking blackmores weight loss accelerate (90 tabs $30) (taken 2 tabs 1/2 hour before each meal - 6 per day).

Hope this helps.

[candycane]

I think it really depends on the person. I will personally stick to a regular amount of calories, and increase my exercise level. Plateaus get everyone at some stage unfortunately.

'Burn the fat feed the muscle' has a chapter on calorie cycling that is very informative.

When exercising protein and carb levels are quite important, you need to fuel your body appropriately otherwise it will breakdown its own muscle to use as fuel, however from what i've seen in this forum lots of people get by by only counting calories and not so much worrying about protein/carb/fat ratio. I know personally, i prefer to have a similar carb-protein ratio, and the rest (good) fats. If i eat to many carbs - no matter what source - i'll start gettin jiggly.

Hope you reach that 66 goal on sunday's weigh in

[Samantha Jean]

Thanks Candy, well I'm sure that doing it with exercise rather than food would work in the same way, it just fits me better doing it with food. Yeah my carb to protein ratio is roughly equal too (179.5g carb:110.4g protein). I always try to keep everything at the appropriate level, which is why calorieking is so helpful.

I don't want people to think I'm telling them what to do or that I am an expert & know what I am talking about (lol)... I am using it like a journal & recording my thoughts & what I am doing, if someone finds it helpful to them that's great but everyone is different & it is mostly trial and error and it is all a journey & a learning experience. You do what works and stop what doesn't... lol.

I also want to note that I know people will say I am not eating enough but considering I am at a lower weight (healthy range) and don't need to consume as much, as well as the fact that I haven't been exercising lately (if i was I would eat more) I don't think it is that bad. Also, I have not been starving myself at all. When I am hungry I make sure that I eat.

[Samantha Jean]

I lost 1.6kg last week and have lost 1kg so far this week without too much trouble... I have not struggled much and have not felt hungry. My body is beginning to click on now because today I was so so very hungry. I would eat & still be hungry.

I did a bit of research and apparently after your body loses a certain amount of weight your body realises that something is going on. It then sends out extreme hunger signals to check that there is not a famine. This can contribute to rebound weight gain (from ravenous over eating) or affect your metabolism and make you retain the weight in order to prepare for famine.

Apparently the most common response to this famine reaction with conventional weight loss programs is to struggle on, resist the hunger and exercise more. This makes the famine reaction worse because then your body starts storing fat & your metabolism slows down & you get stuck in a plateau where you are doing all the right things but still not losing weight, but obviously if you overeat you will put all of the weight you lost back on.

The trick, as they say, is to understand your bodies signals & when it is really hungry. Eat when you are hungry but choose foods that are healthy & make you feel full but don't go crazy. I have eaten over my kilojoules today & was still very hungry, so I had a ham sandwich. I have eaten about 1000kj over my budget today but only because I was hungry & I tried to make good choices. I expect to go up a little tomorrow but I will be happy with that because my body told me to and I feel that it will be better for me in the long run. I believe this theory because it makes sense to me.

Here is a link regarding the famine reaction if anyone is interested (I'm sure there is more information if you search too): http://www.superliving.com.au/StoryView ... 0Nutrition