16 Pounds Lost!

I hope everyone survived Thanksgiving. I had a great time with my parents. I even won $27 at the casino! I also went to a Weight Watchers meeting while I was away. They said I had gained 0.2 lbs. I didn't really believe them because I had been super good the previous week. The only big difference was that I didn't go to water aerobics on Tuesday night because I was on a plane. But I didn't get too depressed. I ate well for the first two nights, but it was all down hill after Thanksgiving. It was liberating allowing myself to eat or drink whatever and however much I wanted. I realized how restrictive I have been with myself. But it also felt bad because I knew I was going to pay for it this week during my weigh-in. The funny thing was that I actually lost 2.2 lbs. last week! How the f*ck did I do that? My theory is that I actually lost weight two weeks ago - like 4 lbs., but since the scales were different it didn't show up. Then I think I gained 2 lbs. back last week during my Thanksgiving feast. I was also good on Sunday and Monday and had water aerobics tonight before I weighed-in today so I think that also impacted the scale. Don't worry. I have no illusions that I can eat whatever I want and still lose weight. If anything I'm confused. There are weeks when I am so good and I don't lose any weight and then last week I lose! I feel like I have no control over my weight some times.

I'm nervous for Christmas. I am spending 2-1/2 weeks at my parents house. It only took two days for me to back slide into eating whatever I wanted at Thanksgiving (I was there Tuesday-Sunday). How am I going to hold up there for 17 days?! It was like I had no will power. Because it wasn't my regular routine I didn't make very good food choices. I am going to have to be really vigilant while I am there in Dec/Jan. I was thinking about not going to my Weight Watchers meetings while I'm out there because the local meeting made me pay (they didn't accept my Monthly Pass). I was thinking I could save the money and just weigh myself with my mom's scale. Now I'm thinking that it is imperative that I go to those weekly meetings. I think it will help keep me on track. That and making sure I count points. I did count points last week and it was awful to see how much I ate.

I should be enjoying my loss, but I'm just confused.

You: On a Diet

I was watching television late last night and stumbled on an interesting show on Discovery Health Channel. It was called "You: On a Diet" and it profiled 5 people and how Dr. Mehmet Oz and Dr. Michael Roizen guide these people "to a better understanding of the science of nutrition, while helping them change their unhealthy eating habits."

It was interesting and a positive viewing experience. I learned to look for the words "enriched" and "hydrogenated" on food packages in my pantry and throw them out. It was also a very positive story. By the end of the show (taped over a 3 month period), everyone profiled had lost weight and/or inches around their stomachs. (But that felt a little unrealistic. There were the obligatory valleys everyone hit. I have to admit it was a little cliche, but satisfying nonetheless. I like a story with a happy ending.)

That was another thing I learned, that the size of your waist is supposedly a more important indicator of health than your weight. I believe they said that for men a healthy waist size was 35 inches and for women a healthy waist size is 32 inches. But watch the show to make sure. (In the interests of full disclosure I measured my waist and its 39 inches.)

If you are in the states, I recommend checking out the show. It's on tomorrow - November 19th - at 2:00pm on the Discovery Health Channel. You can also link to the Dr. Mehmet Oz fansite on Discovery Health's website to get more information about him and the show: http://health.discovery.com/fansites/droz/droz.html


Job Search Update

For those of you wondering about the progress of my job search, here it goes. I have applied for a part-time internet marketing position with a local company. I figure they'll let me work flexible hours since I'm a student. I also contacted the company I had a paid internship with this past summer. A number of interns made the transition into part-time work this fall. I foolishly didn't think I would have the time to work this fall. Well, I did and I missed that boat big time. The HR Director, who is a friend of mine, is looking into what they have available. Both of those jobs have offer the largest money earning potential - over $13/hour. If one of those two things doesn't pan out I am going to check out more things locally - like working at Curves (thanks Vickie for the idea!), Target, or temping with an agency in the city. I can't work at the university because I am already technically employed by them as a Graduate Assistant and I agreed not to work any other jobs when I took the position. (Shhh! Don't tell anyone. It will be our little secret.)

Hello, Welcome to Blockbuster

So I had a good week. I exercised. I stayed below my points level and I lost! I should be happier. I'm almost at 15 pounds lost! I don't know, maybe it's because it isn't noticeable yet. My pants are looser. I need a belt now for my biggest size jeans. I don't know, maybe the whole thing is just getting monotonous. It's hard to have big emotions each week whether I've gained or lost. I think I'll really feel a sense of accomplishment when I hit my 10% lost goal. I think its 22 pounds. So, it's within reach. I'd like to reach it before my birthday, which is in February. So I think that's totally doable, even with the holidays.

So, I have a different problem that I need advice on. I need to make money to pay off some credit card debt I've racked up living on student loans (which are never enough). I want to pay some of it off so that next spring, after I graduate, I won't look totally undesirable to a new apartment management company when I want to move. I can only really work from January - April. I wish I could work online, from my home, but I don't know of any jobs you can do remotely like that. I would teach college courses online, but I don't have my masters yet, so I'm not qualified. I will have classes 4 days a week at varying times of the day/evening next semester. And I might have to go out of town for job interviews at different times. I'm thinking about Blockbuster. It's right down the street from me and I think it would be minimal training, whereas Starbucks would be crazy training (who wants to learn how to make all those drinks!) I'm definitely qualified for a job in the marketing/advertising industry, but I just don't have the hours to devote to it during the week. Does anyone have any ideas besides Blockbuster? Do you even think Blockbuster is a good idea? Your advice is greatly appreciated.

Grande Non-fat No-Whip Mocha, Please

Okay, I must confess. I have a new addiction. (The tortilla addiction is under control now.) It is the grande non-fat, no-whip mocha drink at Starbucks. I keep trying to convince myself that it's not that bad for me. I have even started getting the tall (their name for small) instead of the grande. The grande is 220 calories, but it's 5 points. I used to get them once in a while. Then it was a couple times a week. Now it's every other day. Meanwhile, I'm a student, so I shouldn't be spending $3.73 of my loan money on Starbucks! The truth is I love coffee. Not just coffee, but hazelnut coffee. But once I left NYC, with a coffee place on every corner, and my beloved afternoon hazelnut coffee breaks, I have been in search of a sweet replacement. (It may be one of the things I miss most about New York.) The coffee I make at home just isn't cutting it and the coffee at school is some kind of sick burnt joke.

So, there you have it. I have confessed. What made me fess up was my weigh-in today. I gained a pound last week. I think it was the combination of the grande non-fat etc. etc. drinks and the bag of Chipotle tortilla chips and side of guacamole I had. (Okay, so the tortilla chip addiction is not totally under control.) So my goal is to limit myself to only two more grande non-fat blah blah blahs this week (through and including next Monday). That will get me back to only 3 in one week. And I'm not going to get the chips at Chipotle this week. That's my mantra.

Oh, and if you read my "Should I Stay or Should I Go" post a few weeks back about running into someone I worked with this past summer at my Weight Watchers meeting, I have an update. I saw her again tonight, in passing. She was in the middle of a private conversation with someone so I didn't want to interrupt to say hello. And you know what, I feel fine about it. I'd prefer not to know anyone at my meetings, but this isn't so bad. I think it was the initial shock of seeing her that got to me. I think there's room enough for the both of us.

I have a big client presentation on Thursday. I'm hoping I can still make water aerobics that evening. I missed tonight because we had a group meeting to prep for the presentation. I also checked out the hours for lap swim at the gym and they are great. They are basically open from 6am-11pm M-F and they also have good hours on the weekend. My reward for myself for a tough week is to go swimming on Friday (I don't have any classes).

So, that's it for me. I hope you are all doing well.

Cheers!

Trixie


(You can check the nutritional content of all Starbucks drinks and food at this website http://www.starbucks.com/retail/nutrition_info.asp. They even have a link to it on the top of their homepage, which I respect.)