not like all the others

Thanks for the encouragement guys! :)

I've decided to do an evaluation at the end of each week. Partly so I can see where I went wrong if I had a gain and also to record it so I can look back later if I need to.

So here's how this week went ...

Week ending 19 April, 2007

+/- this week: -500g
total points used: 182/182
bonus exercise points earnt: 20pts
number of days exercise: 4
tracked: yes
water consumed: 11 litres/14 litres
sugar points: little on the high side

What I could do better next week ...

• My water intake was a little on the low side. I should be consuming 14ltrs per week and only drank 11. It's only a minor point but something I can work on.
• I currently don't count sugar points. I've always had the attitude that if I start to plateau or don't have the weightloss results I want/expect then I'll start looking at sugar. I know over this past week I had a few more than I should have but I'm not really going to worry about it for now

Ultimately I'm pleased with my 500g loss because ...

• I did 4 days of quite intense exercise, therefore some of that has to result in muscle building
• I had a 10.5pt meal of KFC, counted the points and put it into my total. I had points saved to allow for this so it wasn't such a catastrophe.
• I tracked 100% all week

...

I was reading some blogs yesterday morning at the station and said to the other lady on with me to have a look at someone's before/after pics of a girl who had lost a lot of weight. She snapped back at me that it's pointless losing weight because you will only gain it all back and more. I had nothing to say back at the time because alas I am one of those statistics.

But this got me thinking during the day. Let's face it alot of people do gain all their weight back ... and more! And I heard someone saying a little while ago that they have even proven it scientifically now that the body has an inbuilt measure of how much we used to weigh and does everything in it's power to get us back there. So it is/will be a continual fight to get to goal and then to stay there.

The question is ... do I have the willpower and strength to stick it out ... for life??

Yes, this time I think I do. As long as I stick to a few rules along the way ...

• Enjoy the ride there - I'm not going to cut my own throat just to lose weight. I'm going to make sure I have my treats, my occasional icecreams, bourbens and takeouts (but they won't be yucky kfc tho). I think the key to this rule is tracking, accounting for the points used. When I get to goal, theoretically I should be able to just keep doing what I'm doing now and I won't be worried because I don't miss out on anything now. (well other than cheesie-weezies)
• Set some new goals at goal - from the people I have seen who have successfully lost weight and kept it off for years afterwards, they all have one thing in common ... they became passionate about something that involved fitness once they got to goal. One is a marathon runner, another is doing body building, another a triathlete. Now I'm not saying I need to become a fitness freak but I need to continue to set goals to strive towards to keep myself focused.
• Keep the blinkers off - when I started to put weight on again I didn't want to know my weight. Because if I knew about it that meant I had to do something about it. Throughout all my overweight years I have never known what I weighed until I started a weightloss routine. So I need to weigh myself at regular intervals, maybe weekly, maybe monthly. I'll decide that nearer to goal.
• Keep like minded people around me - People inspire other people and the negative side to this is also true. After that lady said what she did to me in the morning I found myself questioning my ability. Negativity brings on negativity. I have found blogging my most successful way of getting on track and staying on track. When I'm around others that are blogging and weightloss focused, I too stay focused.
  

This isn't a guarantee I know but it's a start in changing who I am and who I want to stay as ... "I can lose weight AND keep it off!!"