Results - Week 1

Last week I decided it was time to get serious... and I actually did it. I received some emails of people that are in the same boat as me... and a couple of comments. I figure I'm just going to post my results up here until I reach my goal. Might as well use my blog for me-stuff too, right?

(Again, I am way behind on pictures of the kids... hopefully I will motivate to do some of that again, soon.)

Here is what I accomplished last week:

• I kept a journal of everything that went into my mouth and all new activity for all 7 days.
• I monitored points, as in the past, but also kept track of calories, sodium and fiber. The results were much greater than I had expected. I guess getting out of practice on journaling, you really do lose control of what you are eating.
• I lowered my sodium intake by an average of 600mg each day - keeping around 1300mg a day. Sodium has been a key for me to lose weight from the beginning.
• I remained within my allotted points and did not use the entire 35 point reserve you are allowed during the week. I did not eat any of the activity points I earned.
• I increased my fiber intake, on an average of 4g a day.
• I faithfully drank my water every day. (And my daily diet coke - but never more than one in a day, which is an accomplishment for me.)
• I cut out the late night snacking! (Thank you Andy for the chewing gum tip.)
• Except for one day, I had 5 servings of fruit and vegetables.
• I actually fit in my dairy servings each day too. (Again, a huge accomplishment for me. Dairy and sodium do not mix ... so I haven't been great at that for awhile.)
• I did not have fast food once - although, I am looking forward to it this week!
• I increased my activity, doing something every day. In the course of the week I walked 17.67 miles in 4.8 hours... pushing a stroller most days. This does not include my 2 per day weekday roundtrip walks to the elementary school. I also gardened for 3 hours, and did massive housework. And I started, at the end of the week, to add in some strength training.
• For the last half of the week I had amazing energy during the day, and slept like a rock. One quirk - my body wakes up 7 hours after I fall asleep, and there is no going back to sleep. I would love for it to let me stay in bed for 8. But I guess, as a Mom, that is a silly complaint.
• I willingly ate an entire fish fillet for the first time. And it wasn't so bad. (It was basa - pretty mild catfish. And it was wonderful - Andy is really good on the grill!)
• I lost 3.6 pounds! (I am sure some of it was water weight.)

One big thing that happened during the week - on the second and third day I was starving. When I looked at my calories, I decided to go online to get some help to see if I was eating enough. I found a great calculator at www.nutritiondata.com, a website that has been awesome for the past while as I track my sodium. With my activity level, I decided to increase calories by 350 a day. This required the fiber boost, and helped me get the energy I enjoyed during the last half of the week.

Goals for next week:

• Lose 2 more pounds.
• Try to make my 5 servings of fruits/vegetables equitable between the two. (This week it was almost all fruit.)
• Continue to walk every day. Increase my Saturday walk from 1 hour to 1 hour, 15 minutes.
• Incorporate more strength training, rotating abs, arms, legs.