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I skipped the Week 10 weigh-in. However, it must have been a success because I weighed in for today and found…

I have lost another 4.3 pounds (over 2 weeks) for a total of 26.5 pounds lost so far!

Running total:

Week 1: 5
Week 2: 1.8
Week 3: 3.7
Week 4: 1.4 pounds and total of 5.5 inches lost
Week 5: 2.1
Week 6: GAIN 0.2 pounds
Week 7: 4.2
Week 8: No weigh in - out of town
Week 9: 4.2 pounds and 6 inches for a total of 11.5 inches lost
Week 10: No weigh in
Week 11: 4.3

Let’s look at some of my weight history. (I’m 5′ 4 1/2″)

Spring 1983 (age 15): 122 (and was told I was “fat”)
Fall 1987 (age 19): Probably 127, still getting men left and right
June 1992 (age 24): Probably about 142
May 1999: About 160
September 1999: About 133
August 2000: 165
July 2001: About 145-150
July 2002: 175
August 2006: 190 - 200
April 2007: 217
July 2007: 193

No Week 8 update because I was in Icky-ta with my dad who was in the hospital. I did go off the diet for a few days, but still lost 4.2 pounds in the two weeks between the Week 7 and Week 9 weigh-ins!

Week 9: 4.2 pounds

Total so far: 22.2 pounds and 11.5 inches lost since 4/28/07.

History:

Week 1: 5
Week 2: 1.8
Week 3: 3.7
Week 4: 1.4 pounds and total of 5.5 inches lost
Week 5: 2.1
Week 6: GAIN 0.2 pounds
Week 7: 4.2
Week 8: No weigh in - out of town
Week 9: 4.2 pounds and 6 inches for a total of 11.5 inches lost

As I suspected last week (when I lost no weight and actually gained 0.2 pounds after eating a Panera sandwich the night before weigh-in), I really did lose weight that week but it would take another week for it to show.

Week 7: 4.2 pounds

Total so far: 18 pounds since 4/28/07.

History:

Week 1: 5
Week 2: 1.8
Week 3: 3.7
Week 4: 1.4 pounds and total of 5.5 inches lost
Week 5: 2.1
Week 6: GAIN 0.2 pounds
Week 7: 4.2

My first goal was to be below 200 pounds by 7/4, and I met that goal today. So I’m pretty happy!

I need to start exercising, and I need to eat more veggies.

We have all seen it attached to the front of our once thin and athletic friend - the infamous “beer belly”. Commonly misattributed to excess alcohol calories being stored as fat, the “beer belly” is actually a result of alcohol’s more complex effects on the body’s metabolic system. Simply put, alcohol reduces the amount of fat the body burns for energy. This occurs for the following reason:

1. A small portion of the alcohol consumed is converted into fat.
2. The liver then converts the rest (ie: majority) of the alcohol into acetate.
3. The acetate is then released into the bloodstream, and replaces fat as a source of fuel.

Coupled with the high caloric value of alcohol, the resulting effect is that body is forced to store an excessive amount of unburned fat calories, often in the form of a ‘beer belly”.

Calorie Reducing Tips

• Try alternating alcoholic drinks with low calorie non-alcoholic drinks or water.
• Ask for low calorie / diet mixers where possible.
• Make your wine into a spritzer (a longer drink), or your lager into a shandy - both have fewer calories.
• Substitute your “alcopop” for a shot of spirit and a low calorie mixer - about a quarter of the calories!
• Plan your alcohol into your daily calorie quota so you can enjoy a glass or two. If you know you will be drinking during the weekend, try to save some calories each day in advance, so you can eat normally before you go out.
• Don’t be tempted to skip meals to allow for drinks, as alcohol won’t satisfy your hunger. In fact, alcohol lowers blood sugar levels (it prevents sugar that is normally stored in the liver, as glycogen, from breaking down). A drop in blood sugar levels sends signals to the brain you are hungry. With alcohol in your system, willpower can go out of the window and the snack attacks kick in. Eating a proper meal before you go out will line your stomach and slow the rate at which alcohol absorbs into your bloodstream, keeping you in control of how much you eat and drink.

Source

“Try to realize, and truly realize, that what stands between you and a different life are matters of responsible choice.”

– Gary Zukav

I didn’t lose any weight this week, which I’d have been fine with if I knew I did my best.

But I had two days where I over-ate.

So, I just need to re-dedicate myself to my goal.

I want to re-connect with my old friends, with the world, with having things possible for me again. I can’t do that at what I weigh now, so I just need to keep working at it.

This week is another week, and another chance for me to succeed. So here we go!