Shrinkvivor Weigh-In #3

It has been another exciting week in the land of SHRINKVIVOR!

I have to say that my awesome tribe is outfiting, outlosing and outlasting so far...

We will see what this week brings!

Our fitness challenge was MINUTES.  Minutes, minutes, minutes of exercise.  Could be any activity.  I am at a grand total of 379 minutes!  My slower running pace was to my advantage this week!  I had a great NINE mile run/walk on Saturday and am starting to feel like I am hitting a groove in terms of pacing.  We competitive people have some difficulty in the area of pacing - I am learning that it benefits me to be more like "the tortoise" even though every fiber of my being wants to be "the hare" 

On the eating front, I did pretty well.  I made a HUGE decision to start a medically supervised weight loss plan and will start next Thursday when I get back from vacation.  One of their specialties is medication induced weight gain.  I am very excited and cautiously excited.  Most importantly, I feel like I am making a good decision.  I have been given a copy of the eating plan and have begun to implement the changes.  First and foremost really cutting back on carbs and sugar.  I have continued to drink my 60-100 ounces of water and haven't been through a drive-thru (EVEN Starbucks!) in over two weeks!

Speaking of VACATION... Did I mention that I am going to see TWO of our FAVORITE sisters from the Hood while on vacation this next week?!?!  I will be seeing the amazing Christy M - hopefully for a 10 mile run in the beautiful Texas Hill Country.  Then, a few days later we will head to Austin where I will get to see the lovely Lisa M!  We all had so much fun together on Team Shrinking Jeans and I have been in some serious SAH withdrawals since being in San Diego.  The bigger reason we are off to Texas is to attend the wedding of my husband's youngest brother.  The greatest part is that my husband is performing the ceremony (he's a pastor) - an opportunity that most pastors do not get.

Anyway, I should probably get to the details... The bottom line.

Here are my stats:

Starting Weight

215 lbs
Starting Weight for this Challenge
197.6

Today's Weight

194.2lbs
I have a picture but my computer is NOT cooperating this morning!

 (Gotta love this "picture of the scale" thing...)

Change from last week

-1.8lb 


Difference for the challenge
-3.4lb

Total Difference

 -20.8 lbs

 

Shrinkvivor weigh-in #2

What a week this has been!  I am so excited about SHRINKVIVOR!

I am so lucky to be part of an awesome tribe...

We are rocking already!

  
Moxie Maroon Mavens,

How is that for a name!  These are some super gals, who are motivating me and challenging me daily.  I am so proud of our tribe!

This was a pretty darn amazing week... I accomplished a HUGE milestone and broke through YET ANOTHER WALL!  I LOVE a challenge and when I found out that the fitness challenge was a miles challenge, I was excited!  Then, I had to step back and realize JUST how much my life had already changed... I, Tiffany Zook, was excited about a MILES challenge?!?!  What on earth was that?!?! I have come so far... I set out to knock it out of the park and I did!  My total miles between Thursday morning and last night:

24  TWENTY FOUR!!!

On the eating front, I did pretty well.  I have really watched my portions and water, oh the water... I have been drinking enough water to propel me across the ocean afloat.  100 + ounces every day to be exact!  I have also been watching my sugar intake.  Those things combined with the exercise have made for a successful week.

I am looking into some medically supervised eating plans, doing research and weighing the benefits of going that route given the fact that much of my weight gain and difficulty losing is medication related.  Until having medication related weight gain, I never had any difficulty losing weight when I wanted.  I dropped 40 pounds after my first son in less than six months without much struggle and was still able to "indulge" here and there without much impact.  I am currently at FOUR years of carrying 60 extra pounds from the weight I was at after my first son, 50 of which packed on within several months of going on medication for post-partum anxiety/depression.  I have tried WW, calorie counting, South Beach, Blood Type Diet with an average of 1-3 pound loss in the first month to six weeks.  The only positive has been that I seem to have mastered maintaining my weight give or take 5 pounds... Just not the optimal weight. I finally found success using an appetite/craving control supplement with following a low carb/low calorie (1200/day) eating plan combined with training for my first half marathon and dropped 19 pounds over the course of six months.  This was great, but slow, slow.  I know the saying... slow and steady wins the race... Yeah, yeah, yeah.  I also know how this 197 pound body feels running.  It feels like I am carrying another person with me.  I have been making incredible strides with my speed and breathing, being able to run at and 11-12 minute/mile pace... as long as I continue on with my walk intervals.  I am mentally ready to drop the walk intervals... My body just isn't seeming able to maintain the pace.  It is a lot to ask of my frame carrying this much extra.

Anyway, all that ramble to say that I am looking at a medically supervised program that incorporates a similar medication to the supplement I was taking before.  This program has been very successful for others with medication related weight gain.  Part of the program is a year of maintenance to assist/ensure that patients are supported to implement lasting/effective habits.  I have a few more questions to be answered before making a final decision, so stay tuned...

Here are my stats:

Starting Weight

215 lbs
Starting Weight for this Challenge
197.6

Today's Weight

196lbs

 (I can't believe I actually took a picture...)

Change from last week

-1.6lb 
(feel like it should have been more, given the exercise...)
Difference for the challenge
-1.6lb

Total Difference

 -19 lbs

 

Shrinkvivor - Openning Weigh-In

I am so excited that today is the day I start the BIGGEST and CRAZIEST challenge ever at the Sisterhood...

I love that they have taken a familiar concept to most of us and have turned it into one HUGE challenge!

I love a challenge, I love a group challenge AND I love a challenge with AMAZING prizes!  Look what we are playing for HERE.

So, what does all of this mean for me?  Well, I am a part of an awesome team... Team Maroon, and in just the time I have had to get aquainted with them over the past day or so, I can tell you that I don't want to let them down as much as I don't want to let myself down.

It has been a very "bumpy" couple of months and it is time to get serious, get my act together and shed some more of this baggage I am carrying around!  On Monday, I started back to calorie counting, cutting my eating off two hours before going to bed, and exercising the way I know works well for me. I have not been on the scale since before my birthday trip to Vegas that included a lot of eating and drinking, so I am sure that this number will reflect just that.  I am ramping up my mileage as I train for my next Half Marathon on November 7th and adding Shred or Yoga 2-3 days/week.  

The weather here on the surface of the sun (AKA the desert southwest) is finally starting to cool off, so I am able to run outside, which is a huge PLUS for me!  My medication increase has fully kicked in and I feel human again, with some drive and feeling that I can do what I need to do for myself again.  So all in all I say...

BRING IT ON!!!

Here are my stats:

Starting Weight

215 lbs
Starting Weight for this Challenge
197.6

Today's Weight

197.6lbs

 (I can't believe I actually took a picture...)

Change from last week

N/A
Difference for the challenge
N/A

Total Difference

 -17.4 lbs

 

Down & Dirty in 30 Weigh-In #5

All I can say about this week is that I am in "ready for vacation" mode...   Hubby and I leave on Friday for four days away WITHOUT kids.  This will be our first trip alone in three years!  AND, Friday is my birthday, so it is a bit hard to be focused right now.

I had a GREAT run on Saturday - 7 miles and this time I beat last weeks time - struggled a bit with my breathing, but got it done!
 

While the scale didn't reflect it totally, I have made some great changes this week.  I am going meat-free and really limiting my dairy.  I have always struggled with dairy anyway, so that part isn't a real biggie.  I have tried new things and new recipes, and albeit very good and healthy, know that I have overindulged a bit in grains.  I will continue to tweak.  I also took a "de-stress" workshop and there was a whole piece on mindful eating - you would not believe how much less you can eat, simply by being "present", chewing your food completely and truly enjoying the flavors.  It was very eye openning.

 

So while this challenge hasn't ended up being super successful for me, I embrace the fact that I am in a bit of transition with medication, stress and diet.  So, I continue to put one foot in front of the other.

You can check out my fabulous team the The Cute Calorie Cutting Challengers, HERE 

Starting Weight

215 lbs
Starting Weight for this Challenge
196.2

Today's Weight

196.6lbs

Change from last week

+0.2 lb
Difference for the challenge
+0.4 lb

Total Difference

 -18.4 lbs