It looks like my metabolism is where it should be; which is very, very good news for me. It makes things much easier. It looks like I was either tracking incorrectly before (I don’t think I was, but I really have no way of checking that), or that this little increase in exercise has gotten me back on track. Either way, I am pleased. With my calculations, based on the numbers I had gotten from various formulas on the forum, I should be able to eat 2200 calories a day to maintain my weight. Cutting that by 500 per day (1700 calories daily, or a combination of 300 calories cut and 200 calories exercised) would have meant a one pound loss in one week.

My average was 1734 calories per day, yet I still lost a smidge over one pound. This is good, slow but good. Nice and motivational. I haven't seen my weight move (in either direction) in what felt like ages (about 3 months). Each week (and sometimes during the week) I would weigh myself and get the exact same number (or within 0.2lbs at least, each time). While I know a person's weight can have a difference of 1-4lbs per day, based on water, how much was eaten, etc - I am still going to look at this as a small success and let it help me through the next week . Whatever keeps me exercising and eating right.

Thursday, July 10th
Today's eats: 1626

Breakfast: 252 calories
1 toasted bread, 70g (172 calories)
1 slice low fat cheese (53 calories)
1/4th of a medium apple (27 calories)

Snack: 445 calories
1 giant red apple, "delicious" variety (125 calories)
Plain yoghurt (100 calories)
Coffee with chocolate (220 calories)

Lunch: 378 calories
15 saltine crackers (160 calories)
1 large rye bread, 60g (132 calories)
1 serving deli roast beef (33 calories)
1 teaspoon hot mustard (10 calories)
5 cucumber slices (10 calories)
1 small side salad, no dressing (33 calories)

Dinner: 371 calories
30g salted tortia chips (135 calories)
125g ground chicken meat (130 calories)
Spicy seasoning (50 calories)
Veggies, the same amount I have in a side salad, but with just lettuce and cucumber (33 calories)
Cooked and drained onions (23 calories)

Snack: 180 calories
1 chocolate chewy granola bar (100 calories)
1 orange (80 calories)

Exercise:
Housework (trust me, it felt like exercise!)
15 minutes elliptical trainer
25 sit-ups

Suppliments:
Multivitamin (x1 tablet, recommended)
Calcium (x2 tablets, recommended)
Fish oil (x3, as recommended)

Congrats on getting back on track!

I just wanted to say that I completely agree with this:
Just shopping for clothes that are too small can send me into a fit. I actually cried a few months ago in the dressing room. That's what really got me started again this time (I lost weight last year but it was all ruined by a hard surgery recovery that I let last WAY too long and I gained it all back). I'm glad I'm not the only one that doesn't like buying smaller clothes!

Good luck!

You definately aren't the only one. I have a skirt that is a size 12, I have had it now for 20 months...it hasn't motivated me. Every time I look at it I get a little overwhelmed. But it is a fantastic skirt. I'll hold onto it, but I think I am going to tuck it in the back of the wardrobe...

Edited to add: I admit that I have also cried in a fitting room a couple of times; once when shopping for an outfit for a Christmas party I didn't want to go to (right after gaining 30lbs) and it just seemed like nothing attractive fit me. It can be very tough and discouraging.

Hey lady, just stopping by.

Looks like you are on a great start, I would assume the pounds are going to start melting off! Good luck and keep it up!

Cheers,
MissDFITT

Thank you MissDFITT - so far so good!

I just wanted to SAY...that I read through your whole diary right now, and I'm happy that you too, like all of us, are trying to make steps towards the right direction. You seem wise, and determined, and it really is STEP BY STEP and we're off .........to the GOAL we intend...!!!

I am rooting for you and will keep checking on you.....

...and I almost bought a pair of jeans a couple days ago, sizes smaller, and I put them down, because not only were they expensive, but like you said, sometimes, they JUST tend to not motivate, and actually FRUSTRATE when trying them on......and I HATE dressing room lighting!!!

Ugh I totally agree! I swear its either the lighting or the mirrors, but one of them always makes me look 100x bigger than I am... or maybe its just that I want to look smaller or look good in what I am trying on, but I NEVER do.

I recently purchased two pairs of jeans that I thought were my size... didnt think to try them on. I am currently between sizes, a 10 in some brands a 12 in others... wish everyone made an 11... anyway I bought two pairs of AE jeans 10s... got them home was gonna do a fashion show for my hunny... and I couldnt get either pair buttoned... talk about having your day ruined! I was going to take them back, but was like ehh they should fit soon enough, I'm sure they will be in there for years before they fit! I should have just taken the damn things back!

UGH!!!

Great progress, brown eyed girl! Glad to see you taking such a strong approach, it's in inspiration!

One recommendation I might have: I see that your biggest meal is usually dinner. While that is not a problem in and of itself, I think it might be good to even out your other meals a little bit more.

The reason I say this is when you are up and about during your day, you are burning off at least some of the calories you eat. In the evening, before bed, it's the hardest to burn off calories. I don't think it will make or break your approach by any means, but every little bit helps.

Good luck to you!

PS - sorry to make this my first post. I'll introduce myself soon.

Awwww....don't say THAT....not for YEARS....for WEEKS.......don't worry.....

....I'm gonna make my OWN dressing room at home...change the bulb to RED and GET SLIMMING mirrors, and WRITE a NEW number on the TAG, and WHALA....I FEEL GREAT about myself!!! LOL...i wish!

Ha, it seems like years...I don't loose weight like I used to.... unfortunatly.

Can I come try on things at your house??? I hate that one size is different across the board... and that women's sizing is jacked compared to mens! My BF always fits in the same size jeans no matter what brand or cut! That frustrates the hell outta me!

Sorry browneyed to go off on your diary!

Thank you for the well-wishing, Alta818 . Yes, it really is a step-by-step process and for me, so far, the hardest part is the first step, at least for the exercise it was So far so good, and thanks for checking up on me, I need someone to kick my butt if I start to try and run too early (or stop moving all together). As for the jeans, I have noticed that “skinny jeans” are all the fashion here right now, does anyone else look like a chicken with big ol’ thighs when they try them on? I feel horrible in them and they look terrible. My hubby, who is usually very into just about anything tight fitting (classic pervert syndrom when it comes to me, yay ) even said not to buy them. He agreed that they were completely non-flattering. And yeah, dressing room lighting is a nightmare. There is one store, claires, that has really nice lighting in their fitting room - but you pay a lot of extra $$$ for their flattering lighting.

MissDFITT, there is a company that makes jeans in the in-between sizes – Maurices. At least they did when I shopped there last. At my long-ago 170lb mark (sigh) they carried a size 13 jeans, which was perfect for me at the time as I had no chance of squeezing into a 12 and a 14 was baggy on my butt (I can't imagine anything baggy on my butt, but there it was!). As to going off on the fitting rooms in my diary, it’s one of my own pet peves, so go right ahead. I can’t say enough bad things about fitting rooms. Am I the only one who bumps their head, elbows, and knees in them? I don’t know why but I always seem to come out battered and bruised after I am done trying things on!

hardyb, Yes, dinner is usually my biggest meal because it’s the one I have with my husband and – unlike yours truly – he can eat 600 calories per meal and have five meals a day and still maintain at his normal weight. I was thinking I might cut my dinner in half, but I don’t know. I usually do a lot of re-heating when I cook things that can store well, but for things that are fresh it's usually only been finished for about 10 minutes when he walks through the door after work. I’ll think on it over the weekend and try and get it sorted. In the mornings my stomach can’t handle much food or I get nauseous, I don’t know if this is normal or just something strange about my body, but it’s been this way since I was a kid. As to the introduction post, it was a good post, so no need to apologize for it And it’s nice to meet you.

On another note I won't be posting a food diary for today (Friday) or Saturday until Sunday in the evening. I am going to pick up my puppy and we are combining that with a visit with my in-laws. But anyway, I will keep track of my food in a hand-written journal over the weekend and update when I get home. I really hope that my MIL does not make those fantastic "brun kartoffler"; small sweet potatoes cooked in butter and coated in sugar - they couldn't possibly be any worse for my body.

Anyway, see you all Sunday Have a good weekend and stay on track.

Friday, July 11th
Total calories: 1626

Breakfast: 252 calories
1 toasted bread, 70g (172 calories)
1 slice low fat cheese (53 calories)
1/4th of a medium apple (27 calories)

Lunch: unknown calories
Grilled Lime and Chile Chicken with Red Bell Pepper and Salsa
Water & diet coke to drink

Snack: unknown calories
Teriaki Beef Jerky (2 pieces)

Dinner: unknown calories
"Foil Beef" (basically ground beef with veggies mixed in and baked in the oven)
2 small roasted potatoes

Desert: 275 calories
Medium fruit bowl (120 calories)
Frozen low fat vanilla yoghurt (155 calories)

Suppliments:
Multivitamin (x1 tablet, recommended)
Calcium (x2 tablets, recommended)
Fish oil (x3, as recommended)

Exercise:
15 minutes elliptical trainer (able to squeeze in before leaving for the train)
25 sit-ups
Walking (2 miles, regular pace)

Not the best day - eating what my mother in law makes is always a gamble. Never sure if she adds things she doesnt need to, she doesn't go for low-fat beef or anything like that - so I was trying to be very careful about what I ate while I was visiting. And my willpower isn't that strong

Saturday, July 12th
Total calories: unknown

Breakfast: 453 calories
1 cup skim milk (146 calories)
1½ cups total raisin bran (267 calories)
½ a small apple (40 calories)

Lunch: unknown calories
Open-faced sandwhiches -
½ slice rye bread (60 calories)
1 slice deli roast beef 2 slices deli turkey (35 calories)
2 thin slices white bread (80 calories calories)
2 "frigadella" meat balls made with beef and spices (unknown calories)
Water to drink

Dinner: unknown calories
1 lamb steak of unknown size, maybe 125g? (uncertain size means uncertain calories)
1 small side salad, no dressing (33 calories)
3 small roasted potatoes with spices, baked with oil (uncertain, dont want to know)

Desert: 120 calories
Medium fruit bowl (120 calories)

Suppliments:
Multivitamin (x1 tablet, recommended)
Calcium (x2 tablets, recommended)
Fish oil (x3, as recommended)

Exercise:
15 minutes on a stationary bike set on tough
25 sit-ups
30 minutes puppy play

Sunday, July 13th
Total calories: 1681 (guestimation)

Breakfast: 453 calories
1 cup skim milk (146 calories)
1½ cups total raisin bran (267 calories)
½ a small apple (40 calories)

Lunch: (guessing 400 or so)
Open-faced sandwhiches -
½ slice rye bread (60 calories)
1 slice deli roast beef 2 slices deli turkey (35 calories)
2 thin slices white bread (80 calories calories)
2 "frigadella" meat balls made with beef and spices (unknown calories)
Water to drink

Snack: 277 calories
½ (50g) of a ritter sport with whole hazlenuts (277 calories)

Dinner: 371 calories
30g salted tortia chips (135 calories)
125g ground chicken meat (130 calories)
Spicy seasoning (50 calories)
Veggies, the same amount I have in a side salad, but with just lettuce and cucumber (33 calories)
Cooked and drained onions (23 calories)

Snack: 180 calories
1 chocolate chewy granola bar (100 calories)
1 orange (80 calories)

Suppliments:
Multivitamin (x1 tablet, recommended)
Calcium (x2 tablets, recommended)
Fish oil (x3, as recommended)

Exercise:
15 minutes on a stationary bike set on tough
25 sit-ups
15 minutes elliptical trainer
unspecified puppy playtime
6 potty trips outside (5 flights up and 5 flights down per trip) - trust me, it's exercise!