Weighing In 8/30/2017

Yesterday was 212.75, today is 212.75. This is down 0.75 lb from Monday's 213.5.

It's coming off.

And I'm exercising. At the end of July, I joined a gym and I've actually been using it. I have a weekly personal training session with a guy who broke his leg so badly that it needed amputation below the knee; he kicks my butt (which needs kicking). I'm taking a Water Walking class on Mondays at 10:30 (I missed this past week, but I'll not do that on a regular basis). I've taken a few Zumba classes. I'm enjoying myself while my body develops actual muscles and my clothes fall off me. It doesn't hurt to move as much as it did, either. Life is good!!

Oh ... and my gentleman caller is pleased with the changes, too!

Weighing In 8/28/2017

Well. It's been awhile, but I've pretty much taken August off. Today I'm 213.5, the same as yesterday's 213.5, and down all of 2 lb from 8/1/2017.

I've maintained my losses, and that is a victory.

Labor Day is this coming weekend. I'm visiting my gentleman caller and will restart the Diet Center plan after that ... which means Wednesday. Actually, it will probably be Thursday, since that's payday!

Weighing In 8/9/2017

After a week on lake time (but eating well ... very well, thanks to my gentleman caller), I come back at 214.0, having lost 1.5 lb since last I weighed in on 8/2!

I should go away more often!

Weigh In 8/2/2017

215.5. No change. No change for a week. Sigh.

It's actually time for an egg-grapefruit day, but that's not happening until probably next Tuesday or Wednesday since my gentleman caller is coming today and we won't part company until Monday.

It's also time for pictures and measurements. Well, those will have to wait until Tuesday or Wednesday too.

Weighing In 7/30/2017

215.5. No change.

My last egg-grapefruit day was two weeks ago. Almost time for another, I think. If my weight stays steady for a week (that means until Wednesday, 8/2), I'll do one. Actually, I'll do one on Tuesday, 8/1, since my gentleman caller will arrive on 8/2.

The exercise at this gym I joined will have its effect soon, too. I'm sure I'm retaining water to wash out the lactic acid that is built up in my muscles (geez oh man am I sore!). Once that process stops, the water weight will come off. I'm gaining muscle mass, too, which speeds up metabolism somewhat and is healthier and looks better than the rolls of fat.

Weighing In 7/27/2017

215.5, no change from yesterday.

I did my first VENT Fitness class last night ... an aquacize class. It was fun! Today I'm stiff and sore!

The VENT Fitness in Clifton Park doesn't have the pool; had to go to Guilderland for that. Well, from home the two are approximately equidistant. I'll use the one in Clifton Park for weights and treadmill and like that; the one in Guilderland (I have a membership with access to all four; CP, Guilderland, Niskayuna and Latham) I'll use for their water and rock-climbing wall.

They have this cool O2 bar; you sit for 20 minutes breathing oxygen that runs through whatever flavor or combination of flavors you want to smell (I smelled wisteria, fruit mix, and another mix last night; I avoided piña colada since I don't like coconut). It's not a very strong scent, but it adds a little something. You breathe it in with a cannula (you have to buy the cannula, which makes good sense; it's all of $5). Next time, though, I'll bring my phone and read a book while I breathe.

I have my setup meeting tomorrow afternoon; looking forward to it!

Weighing In 7/26/2017

215.5, down 0.75 from yesterday's 216.25.

And down 40.5 pounds from March 15.

Reward time!! 40 pounds is HUGE. I've lost the equivalent of a five-year-old child. I'm going to the opera with my gentleman caller on 4 August, and he's coming here before then, so I'm getting the furniture rearranged and the upstairs cleaned up. But that's preplanned, so that's not my reward. My reward will be ... hmmm.

I think I'd like to join Vent Fitness. They have swimming and rock-climbing, and I can use the Wellness debit card to join up. And they have a facility right on the way to work!! Getting good exercise. That's my reward.

Weighing In 7/25/2017

I didn't weigh myself yesterday, but today is 216.25, down 0.5 lb from two days ago.

That works for me!!

My husband, who died in December 2014, bought me PILES of new clothes over the five years we were together. Most of them fit my then-current body; some, though, were a size or two too small. Those smaller clothes still have their tags on them, if you please, and THEY NOW FIT!!!!!!! I'm wearing new clothes from my hubby again!!!!!!

How cool is that!!!

Weighing In 7/23/2017

216.75, down 0.5 from yesterday.

In 0.75 pound more, I will have lost 40 pounds. 40 pounds gone since March! Only 60 to go!! I'm almost halfway there!!!!!

And I feel good. I have energy, my mood is positive, I look at the world through happy lenses. Yes, I have aches and pains ... those come from being in my 60s having carried all that weight around since I was 34. Too many years. Well, woulda coulda shoulda; I'm doing something about it now.

Weighing In 7/22/2017

217.25, down 0.25 from yesterday.

Waking up this morning, I felt my ribs. I actually felt my ribs. I haven't felt my ribs in eons. I can't feel them when I'm upright, but lying down ... I have ribs!!!!!!!!!

Weighing In 7/21/2017

217.5, down from yesterday's 219, and I broke the forever plateau of 218.25.

Nothing like an egg-grapefruit day to break through a plateau!

Today will be sensible; smoothies (spinach, apple/pear, protein powder, 100% cacao powder, cinnamon) for breakfast and lunch, then I'm taking the kids to a Japanese restaurant for dinner. And, of course, eight glasses of water!

I have space to exercise!! The kids took the Ashley bed that Jim bought us, so that little room is currently entirely empty. It will, very temporarily, be my exercise room since the TV is still in there, and the TV has a DVD player associated with it. So the exercise stuff ... the yoga mat and the NordicTrack ... will go there until I put the new bathroom in when my Uncle Jim's estate FINALLY distributes.

Weighing In 7/20/2017

Hmph. Evidently I didn't post yesterday. Well, it was 218.25, which stayed the same from the past week, unlike today's 219, which puts me up 0.75 lb.

Since that trend cannot continue, I will do an egg-grapefruit day today.

Weighing In 7/18/2017

218.25. No change.

While I congratulate myself for not gaining any weight over this weekend, I still hate plateaus. This one is a long time breaking ... gotta take a nice, long walk today! If it hasn't broken by the weekend, I'll do an egg-grapefruit day on Saturday.

My daughter is moving 900 miles away this week. I'll miss her dearly, but it's the best move in the world for her, so I'm really glad for her. It's a big move into the abyss of not knowing what will happen, though. She'll be fine ... but she's a wee bit excited. So am I; I'll get my house back!!!!!

Weighing In 7/17/2017

218.25. I gained no weight this weekend ... that is a HUGE triumph!!!!

I spent this weekend in the Adirondacks with my friend Mick, eating pizza and a lovely posh dinner and enjoying his views of Lake Titus. Absolutely lovely time I had, but not conducive to weight loss.

Back to the straight and narrow today, with renewed enthusiasm!!

Weighing In 7/13/2017

218.25. No change. None. Zero. Zilch. Nada. Ingenting.

How I hate the plateaus. But I just keep plugging; this, too, shall pass. And at least it's not going up.

Weighing In 7/12/2017

218.25, no change from yesterday. Or the day before yesterday.

At least it's not going up.

Weighing In 7/11/2017

218.25, no change from yesterday.

I am becoming visibly (to me) thinner. My arms and legs are showing actual definition (unlike my midsection, but I'm working on that). This pleases me no end; I'm SOOOO looking forward to NOT being bigger than life!

My daughter gave me a lovely winter suit yesterday; she's moving south and the suit doesn't fit her and it would be too warm for her new climate, she thinks. She's actually not moving to the subtropics; only to North Carolina where, yes, it does get cold on occasion. But the suit is too small for her. It's still too small for me, but I will shrink into it by fall/winter, which is perfect timing! Red jacket, black pants ... a really nice Evan Picone suit.

I will NEVER lecture her about this, not say a word (I remember all too well the effect of my mother's lecturing and badgering me about it), but my daughter needs to do what I'm doing and lose her excess tonnage. She weighed in at the doctor's office at 270 ... and that's too much for a 27-year-old. She's headed down a bad path that she needs to fix NOW, not when she's 60 like her mother. She's going to an amusement park this week; it's possible that she won't fit in the roller coaster car and THAT should shock her into doing something about the weight problem. I won't hear about it, of course, and that's okay, as long as it works.

Weighing In 7/10/2017

218.25, down 1.25 from yesterday.

My kinda break of a plateau!!

I've been doing this for nearly four months now. I've come a long way; down 37.75 pounds from my starting weight. That's not half bad!!!! In 2.25 pounds more, I will have lost 40 pounds ... 40 pounds!!!! I will not yet be halfway to my goal, but that ultimate goal is more and more in sight.

Do I think that my life will become problem-free and full of suitors when I get there? I do not. Life's problems go on for everyone. But I am becoming healthier, which solves one set of problems. It's already easier to tie my shoes. It's easier to get up from exercising on the floor. It's easier to get down to exercise on the floor. My blood chemistries are improving ... pretty dramatically. My hips still hurt; that's arthritis, unaffected by weight loss, and one day (when I go on Medicare's Plan F in four years and no longer have a huge hospital copay) I will likely get a hip replacement; meanwhile, I gimp along (if I need it, I have Jim's cane to use, and I can likely get a handicap tag for the car with these hips). Exercise helps.

Weighing In 7/9/2017

219.5, back down to where I was before yesterday's gain.

Gotta love an egg-grapefruit day!!

Weighing In 7/8/2017

221, up 1.5 lb from yesterday's 219.5.

Oops. I don't know where that came from. I had two smoothies, a crab-salad sandwich, two Wasa breads and two tablespoons of peanut butter yesterday. That should not occasion a 1.5-lb gain. Gah.

Well, I'll do an egg-grapefruit day today and kick this back into gear.

Weighing In 7/7/2017

219.5, no change from yesterday.

God, I hate plateaus.

Weighing In 7/6/2017

219.5, no change from yesterday.

After that day of bad eating, I'm shocked I didn't gain weight. Peanut butter sandwiches and whole-grain bread dipped in olive oil are so tasty ... but they are not conducive to losing weight!! Today I'm back on the straight and narrow; I'll have smoothies for breakfast and lunch and probably chicken-lettuce tacos for dinner (gotta thaw the chicken). And I shall walk.

Weighing In 7/5/2017

219.5, no change from yesterday.

I will write tomorrow morning; tonight I am simply too tired to do this.

Weighing In 7/4/2017

219.5, no change from yesterday.

Well, it's time to even it out. I've dropped over a pound per day for the last couple of days; that could not have continued. As long as I keep eating healthy and moving more, the weight will continue to peel off at a goodly rate. I would like, though, to rev it up to 10 lb per month. That, of course, means exercising more, which would be good for me anyway. June was abysmal, as I lost only 4.75 lb in 30 days. That shows that I didn't follow the program well at all. I've done much better so far in July, which is good.

From the start on 14 March 2017, I've lost 36.5 lb and none of my clothes fit me anymore. I need a whole new wardrobe! I won't buy new, of course. Maybe this is the time to do the clothes-renting thing until I reach my goal weight.

Happy Fourth of July! Truly this is Independence Day indeed, for I am FINALLY breaking the fatty ties that bound me for so very long!!

Weighing In 7/3/2017

219.5, down from yesterday's 220.

I broke another tens digit today! I bought the CD of the new Alan Alda book on communication as my reward (also an oversized pair of sweat pants to go with my oversized hoodie that I'll take up to the lake when my gentleman caller returns from Down Under). It's coming off!!!!

Weighing In 7/2/2017

220, down from yesterday's 221.25.

Wow. If I can keep this up, I'll be at goal weight in no time. Of course, I can't; weight does not continue to drop at over a pound per day. Would that it would!

I will owe myself a HUGE reward in 21 pounds, and that is now a visible goal. That will crack the hundreds digit ... SO looking forward to weighing less than 200 lb!!!!!!!!!!!

Weighing In 7/1/2017

It's been a couple of days. Last time I actually weighed in was 6/28, when I weighed 223.25. I'm down 2 lb from that today, at 221.25.

It's measurements and pictures day.

	14-Mar	1-Jun	1-Jul	Month Difference	Total Difference
Weight	256	226	221.25	4.75	34.75
Bust	49.5	46	45	1	4.5
Waist	51	45	45	0	6
Hips	48	44.5	43.5	1	4.5
Upper Arm L	15	13.5	12.75	0.75	2.25
Upper Arm R	15	13	13	0	2
Mid-Thigh L	23	20.25	20.5	-0.25	2.5
Mid-Thigh R	25	21	21.5	-0.5	3.5
Calf L	16	15	15	0	1
Calf R	16	15.25	15	0.25	1
Inches Lost	258.5	25	27.25	-2.25

The kickstart to the weight loss is the mile-long walks I now take in the decent weather. I didn't walk last night because it was DUMPING rain, but I'll walk this morning before my violin lesson (I'm starting violin lessons today!). That will kickstart the inches to melt off, too. That said, I've lost a total of 27.25 inches since mid-March; that's not half bad. I didn't do well in June, but that's okay; June is done, it's now July, and I move forward having learned from mistakes and without beating myself up.

Pictures. I'm still a candied apple on two stilts. Well, that's changing. Slowly, but it's changing:

One of the most attractive things in the world is an fat old lady in her undies. Well, sorry. I tried a swimsuit last month, but the swimsuit has structure in it that prevents really watching the changing body, so we're back to the undies. 

Weighing In 6/28/2017

223.25. No change from yesterday.

So it seems the loss of travel bloat is done. That would mean I actually gained only 1/2 a pound during my travels (I was at 222.75 before I left). That certainly makes me feel better than gaining 5.75 pounds!! Of course, I would rather have lost that half a pound, but I'll get there. At least I'm showing a loss for the month now.

Weighing In 6/27/2017

223.25, down 1.25 from yesterday's 224.5.

At least the travel weight is coming off quickly. I was at 222.75 when I started my travels, and I'm almost back to that level, and in far less than a week. That timing says the gain was mostly bloat from restaurant salt. That makes me feel better ... not good, but better. I've ordered a carrying case for my NutriBullet and it shall accompany me on all future travels!

Weighing In 6/26/2017

224.5, down 1.75 from yesterday's 226.25.

At least the travel weight is coming off quickly. Yesterday's egg/grapefruit day contributed mightily, but obviously I cannot do that more than twice per month and those two days must be separated by at least two weeks. I shall indeed eat right today!! Smoothie for breakfast, smoothie for lunch, Wasa bread for snacks, fish for dinner. And lotsa lotsa water.

I seem to have stabilized this month. On 1 June, I was at 226. Over June, I've lost only 1.5 lb. That's ... not acceptable. So, I shall continue the stabilization for another week, then on the 4th of July, I shall start over with the conditioning diet and kick-start my body into weight-loss mode again. I WILL weigh less than 200 lb for Christmas, and less than 160 for my college reunion in May!!!!!

Weighing In 6/25/2017

226.25, down 2 lb from yesterday.

Yeah, I'm back on the straight and narrow, and the vacation weight is coming back off, but I'm going to seal this up with an egg-grapefruit day today, just to cement in the loss and kick-start further loss.

I haven't done well this month. On 1 June, I was at 226 lb. I got down as low as 222.75, which is all of 3.25 lb gone, but it and more all came back while I was traveling. Moral: Eat right, even when traveling.

Weighing In 6/24/2017

228.25, down 0.25 lb from yesterday.

Good. I'm moving in the right direction again.

Egg-grapefruit day today ... just to jump-start the process of re-losing all that tonnage.

I suspect I'll have to do the conditioning diet again and restart the whole process. We'll see what this week brings, but if I do, I'll restart over the 4th of July. Steaks on the grill for the 4th would be lovely ... if I don't, salmon on the grill for the 4th would be lovely!

Weighing In 6/23/2017

228.5, up 5.75 from 6/14's 222.75.

It comes off so hard and goes on so easy. Sigh. This is what a week of eating badly does to me. Last night was the worst ... I ate a Two Cheeseburger Meal at McDonald's, topping off yesterday's breakfast of a Waffle House waffle and sausage. No wonder I gained almost six pounds.

But I had a terrific week traveling to North Carolina. My daughter and I stayed at Holiday Inns and ate sushi all week. And we went to the American Shakespeare Company's really excellent production of "Much Ado About Nothing" in Staunton, VA on the way home. We discovered that the best midway point for stopping is, in fact, Staunton (pronounced "Stanton"), so I think I'll probably see more of the American Shakespeare Company in years to come!

Well, it's my birthday today. I'm going to eat a two-scoop dish of Stewart's Mint Cookie Crumble Ice Cream at some point today. That will be my birthday sin. Then it's back on the straight and narrow tomorrow!! An egg-grapefruit day on Sunday will knock this back into alignment.

Weighing In 6/14/2017

222.75, down 0.75 from yesterday's 223.5.

And the plateau breaks, just as I threaten an egg-grapefruit day. Well, that's good ... no egg-grapefruit day needed.

It's been exactly three months since I started this journey. Back on 14 March, I weighed 256 lb. That's 33.25 lb gone in that short time, which is 13% of my original body weight. Major pat-on-the-back time for me! Of course, I still have more to go, and the weight loss rate is slower than I would like it to be so I'm starting to walk more (ohhh, my aching hips...) and I will find a swimming hole this summer (Mick's lake...? I need a more local hole than that) since I left the Y in a huff over their timing of increasing fees in February. And there is the NordicTrack, sitting unused behind my table; I need to pull that out of mothballs. Revving up the exercise will rev up the metabolism which will rev up the loss rate.

Tomorrow I start my travels ... for a week, I will be without my scales. But I will be eating well, blogging my food, and walking a LOT (as much as I can on beaches). I hope to see a goodly drop in the numbers on 23 June!

Weighing In 6/13/2017

223.5, not budging from the last several days' 223.5.

I'm officially frustrated. I will therefore do an egg-grapefruit day tomorrow, just in time for my daughter's and my trip south.

I'm taking my Bullet with me on the trip, and the protein powder and a box of spinach and apples/pears. Not that they don't have protein powder, spinach, apples and pears in North Carolina, but I'm taking mine from the North Country. I don't want to have to go looking for the nearest Piggly-Wiggly.

Thursday (6/15) will be my last weigh-in until 6/23, since I am absolutely NOT bringing my tall scales in the car with me. I'll keep track of foods consumed and exercise done in this blog in the meantime, and maybe I'll have this huge birthday surprise of pounds dropped in the process! That, of course, forestalls eating much at Waffle House (where I KNOW my kid will want to eat at least once) and other such places. No, I will continue to consume good food while tripping. Fish. Lots of fish. They have good, fresh seafood on the coast.

Weighing In 6/12/2017

223.5; no change.

Hmph. Another plateau. Although I know that this, too, shall pass, plateaus are FRUSTRATING.

I'm having a friend over for dinner tomorrow night. The chicken is marinating, she's bringing the salad, and I'll make the tofu/berry dessert. Looking forward to it!

On Thursday, my kidlet and I are leaving for the beach!!!! I will be away from my scales from 16-22 June, so the next weight entry after Thursday will be on 6/23 (my birthday). With any luck, we will see a precipitous drop. Meanwhile, I'll keep this going with food diary and thoughts on eating out while traveling. I'll take my NutriBullet and smoothie ingredients; I cannot see eating a pastry-laden breakfast just because I don't have good nutrition with me!!

Weighing In 6/11/2017

223.5, no change from yesterday.

Y'know, I'm sure that if I'd give up the late-night bowl of oatmeal with almond milk, the weight would come off faster. The problem is that I'm so HUNGRY late at night, and oatmeal with almond milk fills me up every bit as well as does pastry or bread or cookies, and it's much better for me. Celery sticks and lettuce leaves at that hour simply do not cut it.

Thus, I am likely to continue my late-night snack and suffer through longer, flatter plateaus. Well, so be it.

Weighing In 6/10/2017

223.5, down 0.25 from yesterday.

That's what's supposed to happen. Now if only it happened every single day.

The weight is coming off more slowly this time than it has in the past. I'm losing only 7-8 lb per month rather than my former 10-11 lb per month (on 10 May, for example, I weighed in at 230.75, so I'm down 7.25 lb in that month). Well, that's okay. I'm getting older and metabolism slows as one ages. The point is that IT'S COMING OFF. And it's coming off correctly.

Weighing In 6/9/2017

223.75, down from yesterday's 224.

Little bit by little bit ....

At this rate, I'll likely not be at my goal weight by next May, but I'll be reasonably close to it. And that's okay; I'm doing this healthfully and properly. 1-2 lb/week is the recommended loss rate. Next May is about 45 weeks away, so if I continue to lose only l lb/week I'll at least be less than 200 lb by then. In fact, the MAXIMUM weight I should be is about 178. That's well below 200 lb. I actually have a figure at 178. So that's the goal for my Smith reunion. 178 lb. Then continue on until I get to my actual goal -- 30 lb less than that.

Weighing In 6/8/2017

224, no change from yesterday's 224.

Well, at least it's not going in the wrong direction. And I've seen, a couple of times now, that plateaus end in precipitous drops. But I do NOT like plateaus.

In my ideal world, weight comes off at 1/4 lb per day, regularly. That's 2 lb per week, which is a good, healthy rate. But no; that's not how my body works. It stays stuck for days on end, then drops the weight suddenly and quickly over a couple of days before getting stuck again.

Well, I stay the course, and I am reaping the rewards. 32 pounds gone since mid-March ... that ain't bad!!

Weighing In 6/7/2017

224. No change from yesterday.

The precipitous drop was nice, but now I've landed, I guess. Well, plateaus are preparation for precipitous drops. As frustrating as they are, they are necessary.

I won't sound so philosophical if I'm still at 224 four days from now.

Weighing In 6/6/2017

I missed blogging, though not weighing myself, yesterday.

Yesterday I weighed in at 224.25, down 0.25 from 4 June's 224.5.

Today I weighed in at 224, down 0.25 from yesterday's 224.25.

Those little quarter-pound days do add up to about 2 pounds per week, which is where I need to be. Indeed, on 1 June I was at 226, so I have lost two pounds this week. That's just about ideal.

I put on one of Jim's belts yesterday. I needed to; my pants are falling down! Soon it will be time to take in, then get rid of, all the clothes that fit my larger body. Salvation Army is in for some lovely, lovely suits!

Weighing In 6/4/2017

224.5, down 1 whole pound from yesterday.

Gotta love it when it comes off quickly! It makes the plateaus worth it. Although with a loss like that in a day, I thoroughly expect a plateau (aka FRUSTRATION) in my future. Well, so be it. Stick with it and the weight comes off.

And actually, this is not hard to stick with. I love the food; it's nutritious, delicious and easy to eat. I do, though, need more exercise.

Weighing In 6/3/2017

225.5, down 0.5 lb from yesterday.

That the way to keep on truckin'!

Weighing In 6/2/2017

226, no change from yesterday.

So I maintain the egg-grapefruit-day loss. That works!

Weighing In 6/1/2017

226, down from yesterday's 228. Heading in the right direction again! Yay for egg/grapefruit day yesterday!

It's the first of the month: time for recap, measurements and pictures.

In May, weight loss slowed to a crawl, but it still crawled in the right direction (for the most part). I lost 7.5 lb since 1 May rather than the wonted 10 lb, but hey; I'll take it. I've lost 30 lb exactly since I started in March. I've lost a total of 25 inches since starting out, 9.75 of which I lost in May.

It's slow progress, but it's progress.

To bump it up this month, now that summer is essentially here, I will walk ... and walk ... and walk. I will also get started with the Callanetics. I will continue the PT stretches, but I think I'll slow the visits down to 1x/week. I have other things I can do with that $46/visit!

Measurements:

	14-Mar	1-May	1-Jun	Month Difference	Total Difference
Weight	256	233.5	226	7.5	30
Bust	49.5	47.75	46	1.75	3.5
Waist	51	48.25	45	3.25	6
Hips	48	45	44.5	0.5	3.5
Upper Arm L	15	13	13.5	-0.5	1.5
Upper Arm R	15	13.5	13	0.5	2
Mid-Thigh L	23	22.25	20.25	2	2.75
Mid-Thigh R	25	22.25	21	1.25	4
Calf L	16	15.25	15	0.25	1
Calf R	16	16	15.25	0.75	0.75
Inches Lost	258.5	15.25	25	-9.75

And pictures:

As you see, I'm still a candied apple on two sticks, but it IS less than it was.

Weighing In 5/31/2017

228, up 1.75 lb (!?!?) from yesterday.

That's decidedly the wrong direction.

It's not surprising, really; I've been pigging out for the last couple of days, what with the holiday and the company. So I'll do an egg/grapefruit day and get this back on track. Gotta get the grapefruit, but I have the eggs.

Weighing In 5/30/2017

226.25, down from yesterday's 227.25.

Well. That's more like it. All that housework followed by the long walk with my gentleman caller and his Dashhund (Caesar by name), coupled with eating sensibly, did that.

And I'm only 1/4 pound short of losing 30 pounds since mid-March! Two and a half months of eating well did that.

So yes; I am seeing progress. It doesn't always come in the glumps in which I'd like it to come, but it's happening every day. In a year's time from when I started in March, I will have lost a small adult human being.

Weighing In 5/29/2017

227.25, down from yesterday's 227.5.

As long as it goes in the right direction, I'm fine with it. It's slow, but it's moving.

Did you ever think of weight loss like driving in a traffic jam? It's frustrating, it's slow, but you can't do a damn thing about it. You just sit there for what seems like forever, waiting for the jam to break up. It always does, but geez it can take a LONG time. Those little fits and starts feel like real progress in the meantime.

Fits and starts.

Weighing In 5/28/2017

227.5, down 0.25 lb from yesterday.

Those quarter-pounders do add up. They're adding up in the correct way at this point, which is good.

Eating healthy has other bennies, too. I feel good. With any luck, that absurdly high A1C number is dropping (I'll ask the doc to run that with the lipid panel he wants to see in August/September). I know for a fact the lipids are normalizing. And I have the energy to tackle the Housing Project; my fixer-upper is getting fixed up. The ceiling tiles got done yesterday. The cabinets are all primed and ready for their first coat of paint. I still have to spackle the cracks between the ceiling tiles, then prime and paint (there's a chore and a half). I think I'll put crown moulding up around the room to hide the various sins on the edges. I didn't have the energy to do all that lot while I was eating badly and weighed closer to 300 lb than to 200 lb. In another probably three months (at this rate), I'll break that 100s digit and be down into the 100-lb range again. That will be HUGE.

I never did my trip to Northampton for dipping below 230. However, my gentleman caller is coming for a visit tomorrow; that will be reward enough.

Time to marinate the chicken and paint the kitchen cabinets!!

Weighing In 5/27/2017

227.75. This, although unreported here, is the same as yesterday, and yesterday was down 0.5 lb from 5/25/2017.

It's coming off. Slowly but surely, it's coming off. Would that weight loss were an instantaneous thing ... but it is not. Well, slow and steady wins the race, they say, and I am doing just that.

Weighing In 5/25/2017

228.25, down from yesterday's 228.75.

At last, I'm going again in the correct direction!

Weighing In 5/24/2017

229.25. No change from yesterday.

I REALLY HATE plateaus. So today, I'm going for a walk by the river. That's about a mile and should help to get things moving again. Also, I haven't done my PT stretches in awhile now; gotta do them. All that will help get the fat cells melting off again. I hope.

Weighing In 5/23/2017

228.75, down from 229.25 yesterday.

Well. It's about time that plateau broke a little.

Eleven weeks ago today, I started this journey. At that time, I weighed 256 lb. In eleven weeks, I've lost 27.25 lb.

There are some intended-but-not-this-soon consequences of this. I was trying to dress in a lawyerly fashion (as defined by Fred Gwynne's character in My Cousin Vinny) yesterday. I put on a suit. The pants won't stay up. So I tried another suit. Same problem. I ended up wearing a (cloth) boho skirt and a jacket to court yesterday. I must take my pants in!!

There will come a time when it gets ridiculous to take in the pants (and the jackets). At that point, I will sell my lovely suits in a consignment shop (or donate them and take the tax write-off) and get cheap clothes from Salvation Army until I reach my final goal, at which point I shall splurge on a brand new wardrobe.

Weighing In 5/22/2017

229.25, down from yesterday's 229.5.

Little bit by little bit...

Since I'm frustrated with the plateau, let's take a look at history. One month ago, on 22 April, I weighed 236.75. I'm down 7.5 lb in a month, which isn't the wonted 10 lb in a month, but I've strayed from the straight and narrow a good bit this month, so I'll take the 7.5 lb.

In another 3.25 lb, I will have lost 30 pounds!! Thirty pounds!! That'll be 108,000 calories I've either foregone or burned off that I would not have done without this lifestyle change!

I think it's time to start journaling what I eat. I'll keep the list (and times, and feelings) today and post the food eaten tomorrow and tomorrow and tomorrow.

Weighing In 5/21/2017

Yes, I missed yesterday. My niece graduated from college (summa cum laude, if you please) in the morning and I got into a rush. Rushing does not work well for blogging.

So, to catch up, yesterday I weighed 229.5, up 0.25 lb from Friday's 229.25. Today I weigh 229.5, no change from yesterday.

I LOATHE plateaus. In fact, I think it's time for another egg-grapefruit day tomorrow if this plateau doesn't break on its own. But then, I'm maintaining in the face of eating more than I probably should. I had a friend for dinner on Friday; we had split chicken cooked on the grill and veggies that refused to cook on the grill, and we had a Diet Center® tofu delight for dessert, something I haven't had in eons so I'm calling it a new dish. Yesterday, I ate two apples for breakfast (rushing to the graduation, remember), a salmon filet and salad, the rest of the uncooked veggies, the rest of the tofu delight, a cold grilled bird, and two heaping, and I do mean HEAPING, spoonfuls of peanut butter. That's too much. Today I shall eat less, though I'm still working on the cold bird (I have two left).

Weighing In 5/19/2017

229.25, down 0.25 from 229.5 yesterday.

I really hate plateaus. I know my body is getting ready to shed several pounds at once, but geez. Well, all I can do is stick with the program. That's it.

Weighing In 5/18/2017

229.75; no change from yesterday's 229.75. I hate plateaus.

Today is a Big Day; Tess finally graduates with her associate's degree!!! I will have a college graduate for a daughter!!!!

I'm taking Tess and her boyfriend, Kraig, out to dinner at Akoname tonight to celebrate. Well, there is nothing wrong with their prix fixe menu that includes miso soup, spicy salmon sushi roll, sashimi deluxe and I give the ice cream to the graduate.

Before that, though, I have a hearing at the NYNB for a client. They're lifting the automatic stay so the creditor can get the client's car. We have no objection to lifting the stay (getting rid of the car is one of the reasons for filing bankruptcy), but we will ask that my clients be allowed to deliver the car in at least 1.5 weeks to give them full opportunity to get a new car.

Weighing In 5/17/2017

229.75, down 1.75 lb from yesterday's 231.5.

Yup. Water therapy works. Gotta be sure to drink enough, especially now that the weather is getting hot (it's supposed to be 90 today ... in upstate NY).

I've lost 10% of my body weight from the beginning in March. Good stuff!

Weighing In 5/16/2017

Hmph. 231.5, up from yesterday's 229.25

That's 2.25 pounds in the wrong direction.

Yes, I ate foods that are not on the Diet Center plan yesterday; my daughter took me out for a Mother's Day lunch at Sushi X and I had lots (and lots) of sushi, including two X-rolls.

There may also be a water deficiency; I haven't been drinking as I should, so I may be retaining water (I hope). I shall fix that issue today, and I shall fix the eating issue today. Smoothies all the way ... at least until dinner, when I'm going out with daughter and a couple friends to another Japanese restaurant! I'll be at work until at least 1 pm today, so food shouldn't be an issue.

So ... my plan for today is to drink LOTS of water, eat a smoothie for lunch (I already had one for breakfast), and tame the raging beast within with a couple of pre-dinner Wasa crackers. Oh, and walk.

Weighing In 5/15/2017

229.25, down 0.75 lb from yesterday.

I broke the 10's digit today! That's a magic number, and it entails a reward! My trip to Northampton is coming up!

I have a trip to Olana coming up this Friday, but that's business; it's the IEEE group that I want to network with, so that's not actually a "reward." It will be a lovely trip, though.

Just gotta keep on trucking here ... little bit by little bit, I'm losing all there is of it. 140 lb is within my sights. It's a long way off, and there will be many mini-goals and nice rewards between now and then, but that's the ultimate destination.

Weighing In 5/14/2017

230, with no change from yesterday, but I ate breakfast this morning before weighing myself, so there may have been a small loss (she rationalizes).

It's been exactly two months since I started this journey on 14 March; in that time, I've lost 26 pounds (having started at 256), 8.75 pounds since 14 April (when I weighed 238.75). I need to bump up the exercise; that will bump me back up to losing 10 lb/month. But hey ... I'll take the 8.75 pounds!

And hey ... I've now lost 10% of my original body weight! Go me!!!

I have a doctor's appointment in a couple of weeks; I'm looking forward to the doc's reaction to the lesser me (heh heh heh). He doesn't know I'm doing this, so I'll have to bring The Book with me.

Weighing In 5/13/2017

230, down from yesterday's 230.25.

Little bit by little bit...

It can be frustrating, but that's the healthy way to do this.

Another 0.25 lb and I'm ready for that break-the-tens-digit reward of a day trip to Northampton! That will happen sometime AFTER 22 May (Commencement is 21 May, and all houses at Smith close at noon on 22 May). I've calendared it for 23 May; if the weather is good, I'll do it then, but if it's raining I'll postpone.

Life is good, and is getting better. My ceiling is progressing, my kitchen cabinets will soon be painted (once the freaking heat gun gets here ... it got "delayed" in the Post Office), and my gentleman caller seems more and more interested in me (which is good, since I'm more and more interested in him).

Weighing In 5/12/2017

230.25; no change from yesterday's 230.25.

It's in times like this that I remind myself of where I was a month ago. Today is 12 May; on 12 April, I weighed 239. I've lost 8.25 lb this month, which is not half bad. I do need, though, to step up the activity and get moving. That will bring the weight loss back up to 10 lb/month.

I had a bowl of strawberries and blackberries at bedtime last night rather than the peppermint tea. Tonight, it's the peppermint tea for sure.

Yesterday, I spent the day working in the yard. I got those two STUPID metal poles pulled out (my yard has no more metal poles sticking out of it), and I came up with a plan to get rid of the stones. I planted the blueberry bushes and I ordered the pots for the strawberries. I got a goodly part of the vine up and out.

Today I shall continue the viny removal process. I expect the heat gun for the wallpaper on the kitchen shelves to get here; once that's here, I'll spend some time stripping and sanding those. Then I'll prime and paint them. I have the paint.

And the ceiling needs its webbing across the furring strip furrows so I can continue with the tiling of that.

Then come the stairs. Well, those are a project for this winter.

Weighing In 5/11/2017

230.25, down from yesterday's 230.75.

It's moving in the right direction!

Somehow, though, I need to tackle the late-night munchies. They're killing me. I don't eat badly late at night, but I do nibble on fruit and Wasa crackers ... and it's the grazing that put the weight on to begin with. I shall have to research that one; it's probably something psychological. I'm surely not starving to death at midnight, having eaten well during the day!

I can think of several psych things that might be triggering. There's my mother's two-year-dead voice in my ear telling me how fat and worthless I am (I don't miss her). There's the callousness of certain remaining family members who shall go nameless. There's the Call of the Food. I've thrown out much of the food that I turned to for comfort, but I still know that flour and Crisco are only a short drive and a couple of bucks away. I wonder if drinking a cup of peppermint tea out of the Botanic Garden tea-for-one set would help? I'll give it a whirl if I get the munchies tonight.

Weighing In 5/10/2017

230.75, down from 232.25 yesterday.

Yup, that egg/grapefruit day yesterday was the Right Thing To Do.

Today I'm back on the straight and narrow. I will have a smoothie for breakfast and lunch (since I'll be at the office at lunchtime) and a salmon salad for dinner. Fruit will be a fine mid-afternoon snack. And I shall drink sufficient water. I've been slacking off on the water for awhile now.

In another pound, I shall crack another 10 pounds. My reward will be ... hmmm. I think I'll take a ride over to Northampton and wander the Smith campus in springtime. That's a lovely day.

Weighing In 5/9/2017

232.25, same as the last few days.

I've gone off the straight and narrow for the last few days, and it's showing. I need to shock myself into going back on the straight and narrow. One egg/grapefruit day, coming up! I hate them, but they work so very very well. Eight eggs, eight grapefruit halves, eight glasses of water, that's it. Expect the dropping of weight in the next couple of days after that shock to the system.

Then I will indeed be back on the straight and narrow. I ate things like salad dressing and a dish of oatmeal with cream yesterday; I've been off since my gentleman caller left, and it's time to fix that. This is why the weight is being recalcitrant. Back to chicken'n'fish, chicken'n'fish. Though I did have a delicious dish for dinner a couple of nights ago: chicken "tacos" in which the "taco" shells were romaine leaves! That was my daughter's brilliant idea.

Weighing In 5/8/2017

232.25; no change from yesterday.

Well, at least it didn't go up.

I sometimes secret shop, just for fun. Today I have an assignment at a restaurant, so no egg/grapefruit day today. Tomorrow, though, yes; I can use the shock to my system.

Weighing In 5/7/2017

232.25, up 0.5 lb from yesterday.

Oops. If that trend continues, I'll do an egg/grapefruit day tomorrow.

So. What went wrong? Well, I had four slices of marble rye with a butter smear yesterday. Both the bread and the butter are gone now so that won't happen again.

Today is Mother's Day. Happy Mother's Day to all the moms out there.

Weighing In 5/6/2017

231.75, down from yesterday's 232.

One month ago today, on 6 April, I weighed 241.75. I lost exactly 10 pounds this month ... and that is exactly how this weight-loss regime is supposed to work. Despite being older (I'll be 61 next month), post-menopausal, less active, with weird lipid panels and rising A1C readings, knocking out all sugar and following this program works just like it did when I first did it ... in the early 1980s, when I was in my mid-20s.

No complaints about that!!

And on this date next month, I thoroughly expect to weigh 10 pounds less than I do now. I'm finally living the dream!

Weighing In 5/5/2017

232, down from yesterday's 232.5.

I'm not quite sure why. I ate well but slid off a bit yesterday with two slices of marbled rye bread with butter and three sticks of pepper jack cheese at bedtime (I was hungry). Can't do much of that, but it sure tasted good last night!

While there is nothing wrong with a midnight snack, that snack needs to focus on protein, not on fats and carbs. From now on, when hungry at night I'll scramble up an egg.

Weighing In 5/4/2017

232.5, down from yesterday's 233.75.

That's what happens when you follow this weight-loss program (notice how I don't say "diet"). And I feel good, both mentally and physically, with lots (and lots) of energy, smooth skin (my skin is getting loose; age increases bagginess, unfortunately).

My gentleman caller took me out for lunch yesterday, but that was easy; the restaurant served a chicken Caesar salad with dressing on the side. No deviations there.

Weighing In 5/3/2017

233.75 up from 233.5 two days ago.

Yup. No surprises there. I had a hotel restaurant's version of mass-produced chicken bruschetta for lunch yesterday (complete with mashed potatoes), then a huge ribeye steak for dinner last night. Well, it's back to chicken'n'fish, chicken'n'fish, chicken'n'fish. Not a bad routine.

If the weight gain continues tomorrow, tomorrow I'll do an egg/grapefruit day.

Not Weighing In 5/2/2017

No weighing in this morning; Have company and standing on the scales would not have been appropriate.

Today is the day that I've planned to be thoroughly off the diet. Canned restaurant food for lunch and a marinated ribeye steak for dinner ... not exactly conducive to losing weight. But my friend and I went for a nice long walk down by the river yesterday and if the weather clears up we'll do something akin to that today, too. If I lose weight over the next day, that's fine; if not, that's fine too. I won' stray mightily from the wonted path. There will be no sugar today ... no dessert, which is fine; I have PILES of strawberries and a box each of blueberries and blackberries that I can mix together and make a fine dessert at home.

Weighing In 5/1/2017

233.5, no change from yesterday's 233.5, and that's fine.

I'm having company for the next two days; my gentleman caller is coming down from Malone to visit and watch me get my SBA Small Business Excellence award tomorrow! I'm really looking forward to his visit! We'll do many fun things ... including going out to eat. Well, I've got my food all planned out. If we go to the Van Dyck, I shall have a Caesar salad with shrimp, dressing on the side. That one's easy. If we go to the Thai Thai, I shall have sashimi deluxe (which comes with miso soup). Anywhere else, I shall look up their menus online and make the appropriate decision before going.

Tomorrow, though, I'm planning to eat badly. First comes the luncheon; I have no idea what is being served, but I shall avoid dessert. Then for tomorrow evening I have ribeye steaks marinating in the fridge. Those are absolutely NOT on this lifestyle, especially not with that salty (soy sauce) marinade they're in, and I might put on a pound or two. But on Wednesday, I'll get right back on the wagon. Planning Is Everything.

Oh! I nearly forgot. It's picture and measurement day.

Measurements. I lost 20.25 inches this month, and 37.75 inches overall ... that's not half bad!!

	14-Mar	1-Apr	1-May	Month Difference	Total Difference
Weight	256	243.25	233.5	9.75	22.5
Bust	49.5	48.5	47.75	0.75	1.75
Waist	51	50	48.25	1.75	2.75
Hips	48	47.5	45	2.5	3
Upper Arm L	15	14	13	1	2
Upper Arm R	15	14.5	13.5	1	1.5
Mid-Thigh L	23	23.25	22.25	1	0.75
Mid-Thigh R	25	24	22.25	1.75	2.75
Calf L	16	16	15.25	0.75	0.75
Calf R	16	16	16	0	0
Inches Lost	0			20.25	37.75

Pictures. I'm still a candied apple on two sticks, but at least it's shrinking ... it's shrinking ....

Weighing In 4/30/2017

233.5, down from yesterday's 234.25.

I'll take it! This slope is going in the right direction! It will even out again eventually, probably soon, but this slip and slide is excellent!

Tomorrow I measure. Today I review the month.

I started on 1 April at 243.25 lb. I've lost exactly 10 lb. this month. That's exactly as it should be.

Since starting on 14 March, I've lost 22.5 lb.

I've eaten well. Lots of chicken and fish and veggies and fruits.

I've felt REALLY GOOD. Lots of energy. I still do.

I'm falling down on getting enough water into my system lately. I think I know a way around that; I'm going to try it today.

I plan (notice the word: PLAN) to go off the beaten track on Tuesday, first with my awards luncheon, though I will refuse their doubtless sugary dessert, then with a big, thick, marinated, grilled ribeye steak that evening. That's not a reward; that's a treat for my gentleman caller who likes grilled meat, and for my daughter, who needs red meat. I will be right back on the beaten track on Wednesday.

Weighing In 4/29/2017

234.25, down from yesterday's 235.5.

Wow. 1.25 pounds. Don't ask me what happened there; I haven't a clue. But hey; I'll take it!!

Today is Housecleaning Day. My gentleman caller is coming on Monday and I want this place to sparkle when he gets here. That means I'm moving furniture around today (well, the beds don't move well, but the other furniture does).

And my Apple Watch is coming today!! I can thus track steps. I need to do that. I haven't yet gotten off my duff, and getting off my duff becomes more and more important as my hips get worse and worse. Well, I have an appointment with the doctor in May to get them re-evaluated; I will mutter "X-ray them" at him and we'll see what's actually going on. The PT helps, but it does not take the pain of moving those joints away. If I need a hip replacement, this would be a Good Year to do that.

Weighing In 4/28/2017

235.5, down from yesterday's 235.75.

Little bit by little bit, I'm getting to where I need to be. In another 5.75 pounds, I'll be below 230 ... I haven't weighed that little in years.

I'm feeling really quite good about myself. I am succeeding, and all this tonnage is peeling off at a healthy rate. Granted, that healthy rate is frustrating (I want it all gone NOW), but, once gone, it will stay gone. How do I know? Because, first, I'm going to sell or donate all my fat clothes, and I'm not buying more. Second, if and when the weight does begin to creep back up (as it very well may, and that's not a defeat), I will simply hit the reset button by going back on the Diet Center's reducing diet. That's easy to do. I'll give myself a 10-pound leeway; if I gain 10.25 pounds above that 139-pound goal I set, I will immediately, and I do mean IMMEDIATELY, go back on the reducing diet and get rid of it.

I can do this. I have a plan. All I need to do is stick to my plan.

All sights are set on 229.75 pounds, which is my next mini-goal weight.

Weighing In 4/27/2017

235.75, down from yesterday's 236.

Ah. That's better. It's too soon for another egg/grapefruit day, so I'm glad to see the 1/4 lb melt on its own.

PT today. That's good; those stretches and strengthening exercises feel much better with someone pulling on my hip. But I will indeed cut it down to 1x/week soon; at $46/session, it adds up.

And, if I let it, that would get me started on health insurance. I'm not going there.

Have a great day!

Weighing In 4/26/2017

236 with no change for the last two days.

Well, it will all fall off suddenly one day. But plateaus do test the patience of even the saintliest of humans.

Weighing In 4/25/2017

236, no change from yesterday.

That's no surprise. Yesterday's eating was entirely disrupted by the events in the neighborhood. While I didn't stray from eating good food, but I ate only sporadically with no semblance of a schedule. Well, it's back to the straight and narrow today!

Weighing In 4/24/2017

236, down from yesterday's 236.75.

That's 20 pounds gone!!!!!!!!!! I've ordered new hiking boots (not cross-trainers) as my reward because my gentleman caller and I are talking about doing some hiking this summer.

We had some excitement in the 'hood last night. My friend and fellow crazy-cat-lady Moira's next-door neighbor's house burned to the ground. Fire in my neighborhood is a very scary thing; we all live in wood-frame houses of the 100-year-plus vintage, so when one goes up we worry about a neighborhood-wide conflagration. Lucky for us, so does the local fire department, which acted quickly to limit the destruction. Moira's house is reasonably intact; no one (including the fire department) quite understands how that is true.

At least one person died in that fire. I didn't know that person, but am sorry she had such a horrific death. No one deserves death by fire.

I have my friend's cats until the damage to her back door is repaired. The cops kicked the door in to make sure she got out in time, which she and the cats all did (one of these kitties owes his life to the firemen and policemen who corralled and . My cats are NOT happy about this; neither are hers, but hers are at least safe and able to express their Extreme Displeasure.

Weighing In 4/23/2017

236.5, down from yesterday's 236.75.

It's a gentle, gradual decline in the weight, which is exactly what it's supposed to be. It did not go on overnight; it does not come off overnight, and there is no miracle (short of massive liposuction surgery, which is NOT going to happen) that would make it come off any faster. But the 1/4-lb losses do seem tiny sometimes. Well, at least the numbers are going in the right direction. And these baby steps, taken together, make one giant leap.

Weighing In 4/22/2017

236.75, down from 237 yesterday.

0.75 lb to go before I can get my 20-lb reward of squeak-free cross-trainers! I have lost a grand sum total of 19.25 lb as of today, and that is a GREAT thing! I now have less than 100 lb to go ... but that's the big main goal, and I honestly don't think about that; I do this in mini-goals of 10 lb and the changing of the tens digit.

I have an interesting challenge coming up for the first three days of May. My gentleman caller is coming to visit and wants to take me out to eat. He has no clue of what I'm doing with the weight loss, and I'm not particularly keen on telling him that I'm not eating the way he wants to eat. He wants to go to places like the Van Dyck (where they have a salmon entree or a veggie burger that I can have, or, better, I can have a Caesar salad garnished with salmon or chicken as an entree ... just have to get it made to my dressing-on-the-side-go-very-light-on-the-parmesan specs, which most good kitchens will do) and White Castle (we don't have any White Castles around here, thank goodness; they have nothing I can eat). I'll curtail the restaurant food at lunch, though; we can eat salads here just as well as at a restaurant.

Weighing In 4/21/2017

237, down from 237.25 yesterday.

That's 19 pounds gone since 14 March! Another pound and I get my new non-squeaking cross-trainers!!

I wore my purple suit yesterday. That one is the challenge to get into when I weigh more than 240. It's a beautiful suit, and yesterday it fit me beautifully. My husband gave it to me for Christmas one year; I shall miss the beautiful clothes he bought for me when I shrink out of them, but they are fat clothes; fat clothes will ALL GET DONATED. There will be NO fat clothes around this house anymore.

Weighing In 4/20/2017

237.25, down from yesterday's 238.

It seems to be coming off in stops and starts. I go a few days and lose little or nothing, then I drop nearly a pound. Well, if that's what my body wants to do, that's fine. As long as it's coming off, I'm happy.

I'm still feeling really good on this program. Lots of energy, lots of endorphins flowing, and a far, far better body image. I'm still larger than life (I'll provide measurements and pictures on 1 May) but I'm shrinking ... I'm shrinking!

Weighing In 4/19/2017

238, down from 238.25 yesterday.

Well, yesterday's egg-grapefruit day didn't knock off the multi-pounds that it often does, but at least it got things moving in the correct direction again.

Time to start walking. That will get things moving along, too, and the weather is now decent enough to walk outside. I'll need to invest in an Apple watch (for other reasons, too; I'm not spending nearly $600 just for a pedometer!) and walk every day.

Weighing In 4/18/2017

238, up from yesterday's 237.75.

OK. Yeah, I cheated a bit yesterday; I was hungry last night so I finished off the box of Melba toast (which is salty). So today I'll do an egg/grapefruit day. Lovely. Well, that'll knock the weight loss back into gear.

Baby steps....

Weighing In 4/17/2017

237.75, down from yesterday's 238.

Those 1/4-lb losses look small, don't they? But they do add up. Boy, do they add up. Let's look at the progress so far.

On March 14, I started at 256. I'm now at 237.75. That's 18.25 pounds.

Last Monday, 4/10, I was at 241.25. I'm now at 237.75. That's 3.5 pounds. In a week.

When I look at it that way, it's much, MUCH more encouraging. But yes, I will continue to take the small peri-daily losses as small wins because those small wins add up to big wins. And I'm winning. Finally, I'm winning.

Weighing In 4/16/2017 - Happy Easter!

238. No change from yesterday.

My 20-lb loss is looming ... I have two pounds to go! I'm trucking on through this weight-loss thing. And I feel good. I have good energy, my self-esteem is going through the roof, I'm eating really well (though I missed one of my waters yesterday). Today is Easter Sunday (Happy Easter) and I'm going out for dinner with the kids, but we're going to a Japanese place where I can get sashimi ... fish is absolutely allowed. I'll blow myself to a bowl of miso soup, too.

I reward for losing 10-lb chunks AND for changing the 10's digit. This is very nice; I get rewarded twice every 10 pounds, and there is absolutely nothing wrong with that. My reward for dropping 20 pounds will be a new pair of cross-trainers ... ones that don't squeak every time I take a step!

Weighing In 4/15/2017

238, down from 238.75 yesterday.

And the excess adipose tissue keeps on peeling off.

Time to set my next reward, for dropping below 230 (that will be exciting; I haven't been below 230 since I did that HMR diet before law school). Maybe I'll go to Lord and Taylor and splurge on a nice new outfit.

No, I'll keep Lord and Taylor in the background. I'm changing shape too much to spend all that much money on clothes right now. I'll see what movies are available at the time and go to one that looks good. And, of course, I will give the celebratory donation to my husband's memorial fund with the American Lung Association.

Weighing In 4/14/2017

238.75, down from 239.25 yesterday.

It's coming off!!

Court this morning. I can't write great volumes today; no time. But I'm heading in the absolutely right direction and still doing really well on this lifestyle. Veggies and chicken and fish isn't actually boring; there is an infinite variety of ways in which to prepare the meals, so if I eat the same thing more than once, that's because I choose to do so.

Weighing In 4/13/2017

239.25, up 0.25 from yesterday's 239.

That's the wrong direction. But I think it might be water (is that a rationalization?) since I was finishing off yesterday's hydration at midnight and didn't get up to go at all last night (??!! - a whole eight hours without peeing...).

If it goes up again tomorrow, I do an egg/grapefruit day.

Weighing In 4/12/2017

239, down from 239.75 yesterday.

It's very nice when a plateau breaks; the weight I was working on metabolizing during the plateau peels right off.

Reward day! I'm scheduled for my mani/pedi at Hair Journeys this afternoon!!

Weighing In 4/11/2017

239.75, down from yesterday's 241.25.

YESSSSSSSSS!!!!!! All that recent plateauing has fallen off the cliff!!!!!!!

And I'm below 240!! It's time for my mani/pedi, and I've donated today to my husband's memorial fund at the American Lung Association!!

From the start, I've lost 16.5 lb, and in one week I'm down 3 lb. I'm doing well. Just gotta keep it up!

Actually, losing the weight isn't the hard part; it's keeping it off where things get really challenging. It's so easy to slide right back into the old habits. So I have a strategy for that. I'll give myself a 10-lb buffer zone; if I get above that 10-lb limit, I will go right back on the reducing diet and take it right off. In other words, this is the last time I'll work to lose 100+ lb at a stretch.

My goal is 139 lb. I started at 258 lb. That will be a total loss of 119 lb. I can obviously do that. If I ever get above 150 again, I'm back on the reducing diet. That's it.

And  y'know ... this blog keeps me accountable. That's what is missing in the book-based diets out there: accountability. Everyone is so sensitive about their weight. We just need to plough through and go public and state the weight and fix it then keep it fixed. It's not that hard, and we food addicts, on the Diet Center program, can stay food addicts; we just change the tenor of the addiction.

Weighing In 4/10/2017

241.25. The same as yesterday.

Gah. I hate plateaus. It's probably time for another egg/grapefruit day.

I was out for several hours yesterday helping a friend look for her lost kitty cat. Lots of walking around the neighborhood, so lots of exercise in the beautiful, warm, sunny day ... but no kitty. He was spotted last night and my friend will get traps to set out to try to catch him when the pet stores open today.

If you're in the Stockade area of Schenectady, NY, please keep an eye out for Buster. If you see him, don't try to catch him; you'll just scare him off. Do post a message to this blog and I'll pass the word on to his owner, who is really quite frantic about him right now.

Weighing In 4/9/2017

241.25, down 0.25 from yesterday.

After the massive loss over the first couple of weeks, the snail's pace seems like it's very, very slow. But this is the healthy way to lose the weight; slowly. Weight does not go on overnight; it certainly doesn't come off overnight.

I did well yesterday. I went to a movie (saw "Beauty and the Beast"; that was my reward for getting my taxes finished and filed) and did not have popcorn or soda or candy. I didn't even miss them. That's pleasing.

I didn't do well with scheduling yesterday, though. My last glass of water was at 1 this morning. Well, today's another day and I'll do better with that. And it's sunny and supposed to get up to 67°F today (that's almost 20°C). I'm spending the afternoon out in my yard, getting it ready for tomorrow's cookout! I have to rake, get the grill out and locked to the fence, wash down the table, poison the pernicious vine, and generally spruce the place up. I might even have to mow — that would be nice!

Weighing In 4/8/2017

241.5, identical to yesterday's 241.5.

If I look at this wrong, it's frustrating. I work on this diet just as hard on the days that I lose nothing as I do on the days that I drop two pounds. I can bypass the frustration by looking at the loss from week to week. One week ago today, for example, I weighed 243.25, so I'm down 1.75 lb this week. That's a good number; two pounds per week is a good, sustainable rate at which to lose the weight and keep it off.

Stops and starts happen on this, or any, weight-loss regimen. It usually lasts a couple of days, then I drop a dramatic amount. If I still weigh 241.5 in three days, I'll hit the plateau with another egg-grapefruit day.

Weighing In 4/7/2017

241.5 down from yesterday's 241.75.

Slow and steady wins the race...

Yesterday I spent the whole day with a client, so eating and drinking were both very off-schedule; on nutrient target but off schedule. I didn't get my full 8 glasses of water yesterday, but I'll be back on the straight and narrow on that today.

I had the best dinner last night; I'll have to do this one again. I diced half of an apple, added cinnamon and wrapped it in a pounded-out chicken thigh. I baked it for 45 mins at 325 in an aluminum foil wrap (to hold the wrapping in place since I couldn't find my toothpicks). I had asparagus to accompany. Absolutely delicious!

Weighing In 4/6/2017

241.75. No change from yesterday.

Yesterday was a weird day for food. Two smoothies (one breakfast, one lunch) and a bison burger (4 raw oz meat) for dinner. I got into a rush at lunchtime and made a quick smoothie rather than cooking a proper piece of fish.

Today I have a client coming in right after lunch, so I need to pack my lunch and take it to the office. Lunch will be a cod salad today; that's quick and easy. I'll grab a box of Wasa bread and take that in, too. Then dinner will be the chicken. Maybe I'll do a chicken-apple pinwheel on a bed of lettuce (ooh, yum!). I should also cut up and freeze the fish I bought yesterday. I'll do that tonight.

Chicken'n'fish ... chicken'n'fish ... chicken'n'fish .... It's a routine that works.

Weighing In 4/5/2017

241.75, down 0.75 lb from yesterday.

It's coming off! Another two pounds and it'll be time for my next reward. I need a mani/pedi! My toenails are half bald. I'll wait until the weight is actually off before I call Nicole, but I'm really looking forward to it! And the American Lung Association donation page in memory of my husband, Jim Simpson, needs a donation.

The Diet Center says my ideal weight is 139. So okay; I said my ultimate goal was 150, but I hereby modify that to 139. I can clearly do it, since I am doing it.

Wow. Imagine being that healthy. I've never been that healthy. Better late than never!

Weighing In 4/4/2017

242.5, down from 243 yesterday.

It's been three weeks today since I started this journey. I've lost 13.5 lb in total, and I am feeling GOOD. I have more energy, I have less pain, I'm sleeping better (I still wake up to run to the loo every two hours, but I get right back to sleep rather than staying awake the rest of the night). My ego is inflated over losing 5% of my body weight in three weeks (yes, I know it's not continuing at that rate). I'm not bored with the food; in fact, I LIKE chicken with curry and black pepper; I LIKE fish of all varieties; I even LIKE veggies. I'm also forgetting to eat on occasion, which says I'm not hungry at all.

Time for lemon water and vitamins. In half an hour, it'll be time for breakfast. One very nice thing about this for someone who lives to eat is that I am living to eat better. I can still obsess over food. I just obsess over different, better food.

Weighing In 4/3/2017

243. That's the same as yesterday's 243.

Nothing lost, nothing gained. That's okay; healthy weight loss balances out really fairly often. This is just such a plateau. If it starts moving in the wrong direction, I do another egg/grapefruit day.

Exercise is what's missing from this formula. I need to start moving. I found the Callanetics DVD last night (hurray!), so I'll start in with the upper body exercises; the PT can take care of the lower body for now. Later, though, when I get more range of motion and strength back from the PT, I'll start with the Callanetics for the hips. Callanetics will help produce the hourglass figure. Ideally, my ending measurements will be 36-26-36, but I'm 60 years old; I don't know if that will happen. And that's okay, too. As long as my waist is smaller than my bust and my hips, I'll be happy. Right now, I'm still a candied apple on two sticks. But it's changing, and that's good.

Weighing In 4/2/2017

243, down from yesterday's 243.25.

Slow and steady wins the race. The dramatic 2-lb/day dips are done, and that's as it should be. Now it's the steady chicken-and-fish, chicken-and-fish, chicken-and-fish and lots and lots of veggies and eight glasses of lemon water every day that is getting the actual tonnage off. This is now fat metabolizing, not water squeezing out. And that makes me happy.

Weighing In 4/1/2017

243.25, down from yesterday's 243.5.

I'll take losing a quarter pound at a time, or less. The goal is to lose 2 pounds per week, 10 pounds per month. That's a healthy, sustainable rate.

And I have a timeline goal. Next May, May 2018, is my 40th college class reunion. I graduated from Smith College in 1978 (hard to believe that was pushing 40 years ago...). This massively excessive weight will be gone by then. It's fine to still be working on losing the last few pounds, but I will NOT show up at my 40th Smith College reunion looking like a blimp. Period.

All the psychologists out there will ask "How do you feel about losing the weight?" And they'd want me to get into my complicated history with food, and it has been a love-hate relationship my whole life. I could go on about how my parents rewarded and punished with food, or about how unhappy I was in my first marriage and that caused me to pile it on, or about the self-hatred that being fat my whole life resulted in, but why? My parents stopped doing that 40 years ago, my first husband died in 2005 (and I had a much better second marriage), I'm learning to love myself after all these years, and it's now time for me to get over it.

Weight loss may be about emotion; I'm certainly happy to be losing the weight, and, yes, I'm impatient for all that excess adipose tissue to be gone. But for me, it's a contract. I can keep the contract with myself and lose the effing weight, or not. I've started this blog before and have dropped the ball and not kept the contract, and that fact pisses me off. It's time to keep the contract. So that's what I'm doing.

It's April 1. It's the first of the month, and the first of each month is my assigned picture and measurements day. Here are pictures of my slimming body; you can't see the "slim" yet, but it's coming. I post these horrors so I can later point to them and say, "Look what I did!" I also post them to remind myself NEVER to come back here; 243.25 lb is a better place than was my starting weight of 256, but it's still not a good place.

And here are today's measurements, compared with the starting measurements. I have lost a total of 17.5 inches since I started!

	14-Mar	1-Apr	Difference
Weight	256	243.25	-12.75
Bust	49.5	48.5	-1
Waist	51	50	-1
Hips	48	47.5	-0.5
Upper Arm L	15	14	-1
Upper Arm R	15	14.5	-0.5
Mid-Thigh L	23	23.25	0.25
Mid-Thigh R	25	24	-1
Calf L	16	16	0
Calf R	16	16	0
Inches Lost			-17.5

Weighing In 3/31/2017

243.5, down from 243.75 yesterday.

And this is with yesterday's weird eating. I was totally off schedule (thank you, PT...). Breakfast was okay (a bran pancake and lemon water), but lunch didn't happen until 4:30 or 5 (I had a smoothie with a pear, a handful of baby spinach, protein powder and cocoa powder), and dinner was a restaurant dinner (the Schenectady County Bar Association had its annual do with the doctors and dentists last night) and consisted of salad sans dressing, salmon ... very tasty salmon ... and green beans that were probably cooked in butter; they had mashed potato on the plate too but I ate only about a half a teaspoon of that; I ate that at about 6:30. They had bread and butter on the table, and cookies for dessert; I didn't touch either of those at all (that's a win!). I didn't finish my water quota; that's a first, and I'm paying for it by waking up with a dryer mouth than usual.

Back to the program today. Chicken 'n' fish. Salad. Wasa. Fruit. Water with lemon. It sounds boring, but I feel so good on this program. Feeling good is never boring.

Weighing In 3/30/2017

243.75, up from 243.25 yesterday.

I ate that lunch yesterday. It was a cobb salad (a very good cobb salad) with chicken and avocados and bacon and bleu cheese (the latter two of which are definitely stuff I should NOT have eaten). And then I didn't exercise beyond walking into the venue and out again.

And tonight I have the annual bar/medical/dental association dinner. I ordered the wild salmon, which won't, I hope, be too bad. Then I get to eat for myself again.

Am I beating myself up over gaining half a pound? Not a chance. I'm doing magnificently. A friend yesterday even commented that I'm looking thinner! So it's starting to show!

PT today; that always helps (ow...). And I think I'll take a short walk; my sore hips should let me go to the mailbox and back!

Weighing In 3/29/2017

243.25, down from 245.5 yesterday.

That's the result of the egg-grapefruit day. It does work to get things moving again in the right direction!

Today is the first day of this sojourn when I do not control my own fate. I'm going to a stock-food luncheon whose contents I know not. I will handle this by drinking a smoothie that I can eat in the car and not eat the food there. And it is likely not to be food I should be eating, especially after an egg-grapefruit day; white bread is very likely to be served rather than Wasa crackers, the salad is likely to be drenched with dressing, and the entree will probably have potatoes with it. That won't do at all. So ... bring my own.

3.25 lb. from now, I will publish my next set of measurements and next body shots.

Weighing In 3/28/2017

245.5, up from 245 yesterday.

That's the wrong direction.

That means I'm doing an Egg and Grapefruit Day today. Eight hard-boiled eggs, eight grapefruit halves, eight glasses of water, and that's it. Too bad; I have chicken thawed and was going to cook it up for dinner. Well, that's tomorrow.

I'm two weeks into this program today. I started out at 256, so I've lost a total of 10.5 lb. over these two weeks. That's extraordinary! It will slow down; 10 lb per month is the goal rate. That's 2 lb per week, which is a healthy and sustainable rate. But oh, I am enjoying the fast peeling off of excess adipose tissue!

Weighing In 3/27/2017

245 today, 245 yesterday. Nothing lost, nothing gained.

That happens. I drop a bunch of tonnage, then nothing. It's like a car stuck in the snow; you hit the gas and spin the wheels and rock the car and go nowhere for awhile, then you get traction again and get it out of the snowbank and back on your way. At least, though, it doesn't go backwards.

If the stall happens for a week, there's a kickstarter built into this system I'm using. I'll get to that when (not "if"; I'll be on this reducing diet long enough that I WILL need it) I need to do it.

Weighing In 3/26/2017

245, down from 245.75 yesterday.

I'm following the program pretty well; yesterday I ate an extra piece of fruit and an extra Wasa bread (so sue me) to help get this sticky little pill I take down my gullet. But I manage to down 8 glasses of water per day, and I feel full on this system. I even went grocery shopping last night and stuck to my list (and got out of the grocery store for less than $100 ... always an accomplishment).

So by now, since I'm down 11 lb since 16 March, you might be wondering what I eat. Well, here's the menu for today:

1-egg spinach-mushroom omelette
chicken/asparagus/onion soup that I made yesterday with the stems of the asparagus tips I had for dinner last night; the chicken is back/thigh/leg meat because I actually loathe chicken breast. I might add some kale and red Swiss chard to this mix.
salmon cooked with olive oil
salad (romaine with a little ranch or honey-mustard salad dressing)
Wasa bread
fruit (apple and pear)
bran muffins
water with lemon
vitamins
Cholest-Off®

I eat in this healthy way every day. And the weight keeps rolling off. This is encouraging, as are the facts that my skin is soft and my blood work is normalizing nicely.

Weighing in 3/25/2017

245.75, down from 246 yesterday.

It's coming off. And, although my habit of grazing late at night is not met, I'm not hungry. At all. In fact, I more often feel full than I do empty on this.

I looked through the Diet Center cookbook (the one Sybil Ferguson came out with years ago, not the little pamphlet thing that they give you for free but the one you had to buy; that book is currently out of print, which is really too bad) yesterday and discovered that smoothies are an acceptable variant of this weight loss regime!! That pleases me no end; I actually thought ahead and made one to take with me to PT and work for lunch since I had no way to get home for lunch yesterday ... and they contain 8 oz of water!

I've had no trouble keeping up with the water intake requirements. 8 glasses of water per day taste much, MUCH better when I squeeze 1/8 lemon into the glass.

Weighing In 3/24/2017

246, down from 247.25 yesterday.

That's a total of 10 pounds lost! I started the reducing diet at 256. I won't reward myself now (except for Feeling Really Good); I'll wait until the scales dip below 240, which is my next stated goal. But I have to decide what to reward myself with ... hmmm. It can't be food-related, so dinner and a movie is not an option. I'm keeping my rewards to under $50 until I reach my goal. That means no massage as reward and no overnight in the Glen Suite at Glen Sanders Mansion ... yet.

I think we're talking about a day trip to Smith College for a reward to walk down memory lane (Smith is my alma mater) and see the botanical gardens begin to spring forth. Smith is lovely in the spring. It'll be April by the time I lose those next 6.1 pounds and spring will be much more in the air than it is now.

Got my labs back yesterday from the bloodwork for my physical. My lipid panel is going down pretty dramatically WITHOUT statins, thank you, but my A1C is 5.9, up from 5.7 last year. Well, with any luck the weight loss will help that go down, too. I am NOT interested in getting diabetes; no thank you. Anything below 5.7 is okay, but 5.9 is creeping up in the pre-diabetes range. I'm not happy about that.

Before I reward myself at all, though, I have a small construction project to finish up. I'm putting ceiling tile up on my office ceiling. That means I must find a way to take down the ceiling fan (with its stripped screws ... maybe Mick will help with that?) and I must chalk the lines (I can do that without taking down the ceiling fan, but I have to move furniture) to do it. I must also do the needed wall repair (fill cracks and properly fill the two holes in the wall that I dug in an attempt to fill cracks) and take down the frame for the dropped ceiling I took out (in October) and paint in here before I will put up a new ceiling. That MUST be done before I give myself any more rewards. There's my weekend project for the next couple of weeks....

Weighing In 3/23/2017

247.25, down from yesterday's 247.75.

That's better. I'm heading again in the right direction.

I ate chicken salad and a bran pancake yesterday, along with the requisite 8 glasses of water (each of which with 1/8 lemon squeezed therein), 1 apple, 1 pear, 2 bread servings, and 3 bran muffins. That was quite satisfying.

I take out a chicken salad and add a salmon serving today. Otherwise, today will be very similar to yesterday. Chicken 'n' fish, chicken 'n' fish....

Weighing In 3/22/2017

248.75. I'm up 0.75 lb from yesterday.

Hmmm. That midnight snack of Melba toast didn't work well. Next time I eat more than I should later than I should, I'll eat an orange instead of a bread serving. Also, I ate more at lunch than normal; I had a good-sized chicken quarter (thigh and drumstick) and veggies. Guess I need to separate out the thigh, back and drumstick and not eat them together. Well, live and learn....

Weighing In 3/21/2017

247 this morning, down from 248.25 yesterday.

That's a jump — a whole pound and a quarter! Okay then. I'll take it.

I will fit into the roller coaster seats this summer!! YES!!!!!!!!!!!

Weighing In 3/20/2017

248.75 down from 249.25 yesterday.

It's coming off. More slowly now, but it's coming off.

Even when I cheat a little, it comes off, though probably at a slightly slower rate. Yesterday, I ate an extra bread serving late at night. My stomach was growling and sleep was therefore escaping me. After I ate one slice of Wasa Multigrain, my stomach stopped growling and I got to sleep.

Well, if I have to cheat like that, it's still an improvement over the fatty diet I was eating up until 3/14. I've been eating this way for just about a week. I feel good (I always feel good on this program). My energy is up (my house hasn't been this clean for awhile now), I'm waking up around 7:30 - 8 and going to bed around 11 (regular hours help with insomnia), and I'm not puffy at all. My ankles are slim. No congestive heart failure for me, thank you!! And that A1C that was at 5.7 last year (slightly elevated; a normal A1C is "below 5.7," according to the Mayo Clinic) can go down, too. I won't see that decrease in this blood work upcoming (I have a scrip for blood work that I must fulfill soon) since A1C measures the blood glucose trend over a couple of months, but it will show up next year.

Weighing In 3/19/2017

249.25, down from 249.5 yesterday. Next goal: dip the scales below 240.

And now the work begins. The euphoric multi-pound water weight loss is evidently done; now I start to lose the fat, and that comes off oh so much more slowly than does water. But that's what I need to lose, so the fits and starts will frustrate me but they will not deter me.

For pre-breakfast this morning, I will have a lemon water (cut a lemon into 1/8 sections and squeeze one section into a glass of water eight times per day) and vitamins. For breakfast, I'll have pan-seared salmon on a bed of baby spinach, a Wasa bread, half a pear, and lemon water. For midmorning snack, I'll have a Wasa bread and lemon water. For lunch, I'll finish off last night's chicken soup (chicken, veggies, cilantro, fresh-ground black pepper, a little pink salt) and lemon water. For mid afternoon snack, I'll have half a pear and lemon water. I'll drink another lemon water at about 4:30. For dinner, I'll have vitamins, a bran pancake (1 egg, 2 tbsp unprocessed bran, a dash of cinnamon, scramble it all together and cook like a pancake on a hot griddle) and lemon water. And to top it off for the day, I'll have an apple and lemon water before 8 pm.

Exercise. I'm going to physical therapy to loosen up my hips and that counts as exercise. But it's time to haul out the Nordic Track and start moving on that, at least while there are two feet of snow on the ground (thank you, Winter...). I dropped my Y membership (it will end on either 31 March — if they do the right thing — or on 30 April). I'm not going back there, at least not for a few years; they upped their membership fee and informed their members of the raise in such a way that the members were forced to pay at least one month of the increased fee. Not nice. It's not the extra $2 that's my problem; it's the timing of telling the members.

I thought yesterday evening that I should post measurements again, but I'm not going to do that yet; I haven't lost enough to make any real difference there. Measurements will get posted with each loss of 10 lb., starting at 239 lb. I can say, though, that clothes are starting to fit better.

Speaking of clothes, I'm not looking forward to the expense of a new wardrobe. The wardrobe I have now is the one that Jim bought for me, it has lots (and lots...) of lovely suits and clothes in it, and he spent $thousands on it before we were even married. He wanted his lady to dress well! Well, the clothes are all in good shape; they will get donated when I shrink entirely out of them. That will deter me from ballooning back up.