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The Challenge - Week Cinco

You - Sassy, you know, we're mid-way through week 5 of your Challenge, and we haven't heard hide nor hair about your progress or any helpful tips or anything. You've got that cutsie little avatar up there in the corner and she's not doing bupkiss. What gives?

Me - I know. I'm a total slacker. Consider me properly chastized.

As penance, here's my progress (or lack thereof) over the last 5 weeks.

Starting weight: 136.8 (Don'tcha just love digital scales and their decimal points?)

Week 1: 136.8 Minutes of cardio: 410
Week 2: 136.4 Minutes of cardio: 245
Week 3: 134.2 (Whoo hoo!) Minutes of cardio: 245
Week 4: 136.8 Minutes of cardio: 225 (Vacation week)
Week 5: 137.6 (Doh!) Minutes of cardio: 150 (so far)

I had started this post last night before I weighed myself this morning and I had written something along the lines of "At least I didn't gain, blah blah blah." Well. Since that is not the actual reality I have to switch gears. I'm not giving up. My vacation is over so I'm back to upping the fruit and vegetable content of my meals and doing a little better on portion control, i.e. actually taking control over my portions instead of letting them run amok like children raised by wolves.

This is generally the point where people (i.e. me) give up, thinking, "Gosh, there's only 2.5 weeks left in the Challenge. How much can I actually accomplish? Screw it." But now is not the time to give up hope! No. Now is the time to get reinvigorated. Batten down the hatches. Resupply and dig in my heels. So, if you'll excuse me, I have to go peel some eggs for my salad today.

While I do that, here's a couple of articles I enjoyed in Time last week. (Let me know if the links don't work. I'm not sure if I ever logged my subscription into their site and therefore whether internet cookies are letting me in unbeknownst to me. Mmmm...cookies.)

The Science of Appetite
A New Diet Equation
What Makes You Eat More Food (This article is mildly evil because it has close up pics of yummy looking food. Do not open on an empty stomach.)
How the World Eats Article, Photo Essay (This makes you wonder why we in the western world don't live forever simply based on preservative consumption)

Comments

tjdygon said…
Well i started off trying to jog. I hadn't weighed myself since I had packed my scale.
I have moved within the last 3 weeks so I have been busy with moving and that included moving boxes up and down 3 flights of stairs. My appetite has increased and I have been hunrgy ALL the time! Haven't had time to eat healthy either.
I was able to fit into a pair of pants that didn't fit a few weeks ago. But now that I am somewhat moe settled I need to start at least eating better. The exercise will come soon.
9:14 AM
Celebrate Woo-Woo said…
I'm so grateful for decimals on scales...and even more so for body fat percentages. If not for those two things, I could have been easily discouraged as my body seems to be in a pattern of losing week, stable week, repeat. Here's mine:

Starting - 151 lbs., 36% body fat
Week 1 - 149, 34%
Week 2 - 148.6, 34%
Week 3 - 146.8, 34%
Week 4 - 146.8, 33%
Week 5 - 144.2, 32% (as of this morning)

I seem to be on a pattern of lose a couple pounds one week, lose next to nothing or even nothing in the way of pounds the next week although losing some percentage of body fat. Had I not been able to see that I lost 0.4 lbs. at the end of week 2 and 1% body fat by the close of week 4, there's a good chance for discouragement to take over.
10:08 AM
DecemberFlower said…
So funny because I was just about to write a "So I'm a total failure at this" post. I seriously have not been getting in even half as much exercise as I wanted to. I know I haven't lost anything, and I know I'm definitely not any fitter than I was when I started. So really, all I've accomplished was getting the bike.
2:43 PM
canadian sadie said…
I haven't been posting, because I've been too busy eating and not going to the gym. I've actually gotten WORSE since the challenge started. Doh.

So dig in...I did today, and I'm re-focussed. We can do it!

For the record--I hate decimals.
5:53 PM
tjdygon said…
Do you think we can start over? Do a do over?
Next week I am over vacation from school and I am all set to get salad stuff so hopefully I can get a kickstart to my healthy eating.
6:33 PM
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