I got on the scale this morning. For the first time in almost a year I was not happy with what I observed. That little hand moved to a higher number instead of a lower one. HMMM. How could this happen, I asked myself. I have been doing so well.
Since last August I have been seeing a dietitian to help me learn how to eat healthy and to make sure I am getting enough of those key nutritional elements that I need when I eat. Consistently I have lost 1 to 2 pounds a week on this plan. It is the plan I intend to follow from now on in my life.
In January I joined the gym. Since the last week in January I have been part of one of their programs, "I Lost It At PEAC". We are divided into teams of four with a personal trainer as our coach. We get weighed in once a week as well as have a team meeting weekly. I had set as my personal goal to lose ten pounds during the two month program. In the first four weeks I lost 11 pounds. The only things I was now doing different, was exercising at the gym for 60 to 120 minutes a day, five to six days per week.
As part of the I Lost It program we also had to meet with a nutritionist once. She told me if I continued to lose 3 or more pounds a week, I am probably not eating enough. I kind of liked losing that much.
When I saw my regular dietitian on Friday, she confirmed that losing more than 3 pounds a week is too much for a couple of reasons. I could be losing muscle and it is better for keeping weight off to lose only 1-2 pounds per week. She increased all of my nutritional values to compensate for my exercise routine.
I usually go to the gym in the afternoon. When I get home, after my shower, I have my afternoon snack. From the time I eat that snack, until dinner, I am really hungry. She added all of the increase to the afternoon snack and dinner, hoping to keep me from feeling so hungry.
I have been following the new plan since Friday. Instead of seeing the scale go down, I am seeing it climb higher. I do not think that should be happening. I hope to get out from under the snowstorm we had today, to get to the gym tomorrow and check the scale there. If it gives me the same report, I am going to rethink adding to my eating plan. I have worked too hard at getting rid of those pounds to have to lose the same ones again.
I know I should not get so hung up on what the scale says. But it is the only tangible way I can determine if I am losing it or not.
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2 comments:
Losing weight is the best thing to lose in this economy... lol. People are losing their jobs and houses along with their minds. I hope you continue to lose it in this case!!
Losing wieght can be tricky. Scales are not always reliable and during the day weight can fluctuate. AND worst of all, every scale can be different! If you weigh in regularly, you can get a better picture. But it needs to be the same scale, dressed in approximately same clothes (or undressed if you're at home). I like to wiegh in first thing in the morning while getting dressed, before breakfast. But even this has fluctations. Water weight can make a big difference from one day to the next. (Like if I eat out, there is way more salt in the food than I add myself. It takes a few days to get rid of the water weight this causes, unless you have an extra water pill you can take.) Anyway, try not to get discouraged. You've done so well and I admire the success you've experienced due to your determination to make needed changes. I'm sure the nutritionist will make adjustments if the added food is "too much" but I wouldn't be surprised if you found out that the scale was just "different" from the usual one you use. Keep up the good work!
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