January/February weight management challenge

[Crankin]

OK, I am going to do this.
My weight on 1-6-12: 109.9 (danger zone for me)
Goal: 105
Then, I want to be able to maintain that, at all times of the year, not just when it's the peak of cycling season.

DH wants to join this challenge. He doesn't care if he's the only guy.I am sort of doing this a little more strictly than I would, to support him.
Mr. Crankin:
154.8
Goal:147

[emily_in_nc]

Okay, I'm in too. I hestitated joining because I know my weight must look miniscule and silly to worry about by many on this challenge, but it is up lately (since we moved to Belize) and is above my target body fat % (I can tell just by the jiggles and how much I can pinch). I have TINY bones so even at my current weight am overfat. Now that I see some other petite gals joining, I don't feel so bad about being a part of this:

Current weight: 107
Goal weight: 103

[Veronica]

You tiny gals have just as much right to participate as anyone else.

I've been on the fence about joining the challenge myself. I'm at 15.9% body fat currently and I'd like to drop to 12% before my first event at the end of April. That's 7.5 pounds to lose in 4 months.

Veronica

[five one]

It's been awhile since I did this. I'm still more or less in the same spot weight-wise, but I know the fat/lean ratio has changed. I've had a couple of slack years of cycling mileage. So I'm back to see if I can kick start my body with a combination of riding, stair climbing, hiking, and weight training. I eat good food, but obviously it's too much good food, so portion control is what I will be watching.

Start: 138
Goal: 130
Ultimate goal: 125

[katluvr]

I have not joined a challenge in a while since I normally DO NOT lose weight when I do this...but I must get the fall/holiday weight off.

Starting weight is 126.4
Goal weight 120 (should be able to do this if I try really hard!)

K

[Tri Girl]

Thanks for doing this again, Posse!
I'm back in. Went back and forth with my weight all last year.
I went vegan 3 weeks ago, and the weight is finally coming off.

Starting: 165
Goal: 155

[klesko]

I'm in. I ate too much for FIVE months during my sisters hospice stay and after she passed. I just could not seem to eat less than I burned. I gained some wait. I hesitated to join as I did not want to drop out but I have been focusing better here in January. I am at 145 and want to be 138 at the end of February. Thanks so much for doing this - even when I dropped out and felt discouraged, I still read all the posts and appreciate all the kind and encouraging words I have received from this group!

[Susan Otcenas]

137 today I've been working my butt off, so I suspect water retention.

By the end of Feb my goal remains 132. I've GOT to get through this...

Don't worry, you'll find your mojo.

I *finally* got my mojo back. After (too many) months of thinking about getting back on track and hoping to getting back on track, and expending energy worrying and beating up on myself for not being back on track .... I'm finally back on track! I've been scrupulously weighing, measuring, biting and writing for the last 11 days. Down 3.5 pounds already. :-) It's nice to see the hard work rewarded with a big bump at the beginning of my efforts.

I know it will slow down a bit from here (as it should) but that's OK. I can deal with it. Ever since Ironman Canada went from being "next year" to being "this year" it got a whole lot easier to ignore the treats, decline the desserts, take smaller portions, weigh my food, etc. I have ZERO doubt I will make my intermediate and longer term weight goals for this year. WW worked for me 3 years ago and I have every reason to think that diligently following it again will be equally successful.

[Catrin]

I think it is perhaps time to start weighing/measuring food. My diet is solid, but I may well be consuming more than I think I am. I write down everything I eat - and I mean everything - and it looks really good in Lose It when I look at nutrition splits and so forth. I am not hungry so I don't think the problem is not enough calories, and my thyroid levels are fine so THAT isn't the problem. I exercise most days...

So that pretty much leaves portion sizes and another good look at how much bread I eat. I love bread...and it may well be that I am eating too much. Portions aren't large, but perhaps they are larger than I think Time to get a food scale.

[VeganBikeChick]

Alright, I'm finally joining. I was ashamed to post my weight but need to be accountable. I'm slowly losing weight by cutting out processed foods and carbs (rice, pasta, potatoes, starchy things) and desserts (satisfying my sweet tooth with a piece of dark chocolate instead), bulking up on fruits and veggies, and drinking lots and lots of water and running. I'm 5'4; my highest weight 3 years ago was 212. Since then I've been fluctuating, but have been consistently weighing for the past 3 months and have managed to lose 15 pounds since my start.

Current weight: 175.4
Goal weight: 135-140.

If I get to my goal weight, it will be the least I've ever weighed as an adult.

[Susan Otcenas]

So that pretty much leaves portion sizes and another good look at how much bread I eat. I love bread...and it may well be that I am eating too much. Portions aren't large, but perhaps they are larger than I think Time to get a food scale.

Even after 3+ years of WW, I still use my food scale. Because, I find that when I get away from it for a while, portion size creeps. Now that I'm back on, I have two scales. One on my countertop at home, and one on the countertop at work. Everything gets weighed. Today I had a spinach salad for lunch, with 2 ounces of sauteed chicken. Not 1.5 ounces, or 3.2 ounces or whatever my brain thinks LOOKS likes 2 ounces, but 2-point-0 real ounces.

WW's points tracker will let you track a "medium" sweet potato, but really, do YOU know what that means? I sure don't. But when I weigh it and get 250 grams, I can put exactly that into the tracker and get an accurate point value for it. Then I know I stay on track.

Some people really rebel against the whole weighing and measuring thing, but I like it. It's very black and white. Concrete. No excuses. :-)

[goldfinch]

Even after 3+ years of WW, I still use my food scale. Because, I find that when I get away from it for a while, portion size creeps. Now that I'm back on, I have two scales. One on my countertop at home, and one on the countertop at work. Everything gets weighed. Today I had a spinach salad for lunch, with 2 ounces of sauteed chicken. Not 1.5 ounces, or 3.2 ounces or whatever my brain thinks LOOKS likes 2 ounces, but 2-point-0 real ounces.

WW's points tracker will let you track a "medium" sweet potato, but really, do YOU know what that means? I sure don't. But when I weigh it and get 250 grams, I can put exactly that into the tracker and get an accurate point value for it. Then I know I stay on track.

Some people really rebel against the whole weighing and measuring thing, but I like it. It's very black and white. Concrete. No excuses. :-)

I weigh and measure just about everything too. However, I am really good at guessing a half an ounce of walnuts because I have that every day and an ounce of cheese. Other things, like meat, not so much. I can be way off even after a year of weighing.

Catrin, I have this scale: http://www.amazon.com/EatSmart-Preci...6317442&sr=1-1

I like it because it is small, you can weigh in a number of different units, like ounces or grams, and you can put a bowl or something on it, zero it out, and then add stuff you want to weigh.

[Crankin]

I could never weigh and measure. I guess if I had to lose 50 lbs., I'd do it, but I'd be stressed. Portion size is an issue for me, so I just have made them a bit smaller. But, since I've already lost 3.5 lbs. in 5 days, I'd have to say it's portion size and too much bread, and maybe the fruit I eat. I've restricted myself to blueberries and I've had one apple.
It's really hard to satisfy myself with a teeny piece of whole wheat bread or none a day. I am hungry ALL DAY long, despite giving myself snacks of nuts, cheese, and occasional dried fruit, if I'm exercising. I am craving Luna Bars .

[ny biker]

I could never weigh and measure. I guess if I had to lose 50 lbs., I'd do it, but I'd be stressed. Portion size is an issue for me, so I just have made them a bit smaller. But, since I've already lost 3.5 lbs. in 5 days, I'd have to say it's portion size and too much bread, and maybe the fruit I eat. I've restricted myself to blueberries and I've had one apple.
It's really hard to satisfy myself with a teeny piece of whole wheat bread or none a day. I am hungry ALL DAY long, despite giving myself snacks of nuts, cheese, and occasional dried fruit, if I'm exercising. I am craving Luna Bars .

3.5 lbs in 5 days is a lot, especially considering your starting point.

I measure pasta, because otherwise I'd have no idea how much I'm putting in the boiling water. I count easily-countable things, like crackers and cookies. I do rough estimates when the label says the package contains two or three servings and I only want one. Other than that, I just try to be mindful of how much I'm eating. I read years ago that a serving of meat is about the size of a deck of cards. If a serving is 1/4 cup or a tablespoon, I stop and think about what a 1/4 measuring cup or a tablespoon really looks like.

But mostly, I make an effort to stop eating when I start to feel full, even if the plate still has food on it. And I try to learn from that, and make the portion smaller the next time I prepare that meal, or plan in advance to only eat half of it the next time I order it from a restaurant.

[Susan Otcenas]

But mostly, I make an effort to stop eating when I start to feel full, even if the plate still has food on it.

I read an article that says that in cultures where people generally are NOT fat despite rich foods (like in France) is because they are taught to stop in a different manner than we are.

In the US and many other cultures, we stop eating when we are full.
In France, they are taught to stop eating when they are no longer hungry.

It's a subtle difference, yet intriguing. I've tried to retrain my thinking in this manner. I don't want to feel full. I just want to be "no longer hungry".