Milestones

I want to write about my milestones.

I am not talking about the weight I want to achieve or how I want to lose 10 lbs every month or whatever.

I am talking about the more abstract things; the little things that let me know along the way that I am making progress.

Things like:

• The dimple on the left side of my face getting longer and deeper
• My collar bones popping out (I just noticed this is starting today!)
• Seeing muscle definition in my thighs
• Needing to take my pants in
• Fitting into smaller bras
• Finding my way into yoga positions that I couldn't do before

I really do love these milestones more than hitting specific weights.  Those number goals are great, but these abstract milestones are what make me feel good.

Hmmm

I managed to gain about half a pound this week.  I have no clue why.  Am I not sticking to my limit?  Was the AWESOME ski day I had on Saturday (and the resulting muscle gain) the culprit? Was it because I skipped yoga?  Is it just from PMS?

I don't know and I am trying to not dwell on it.

I feel fantastic eating this way. I am fueling my body the right way for me. That's what I need to remember.

Tracking carbs this week to make sure I am not going overboard, but trying to not dwell.

Being Brave

250.6

I put it out there.

Given that I have lost about 12 lbs in the last 2 weeks, well you can do the math.

Ugh.

Atkins seems to be going well.  The app they have shows you not only your "net carb" count, but also your calorie count.  I can tell it is working like it should because the net affect of eating low carb is me staying low on my calorie count, which is how you lose weight.

I only really tracked carbs the first week as more of a reminder, but I will keep it for when I need to really pay attention, such as a plateau.

Overall, I am feeling really good about this.  The food is yummy and I am feeling like I am fueling my body correctly.  For example, I have noticed that I don't have to have as huge of  snack before yoga to make it through the class, despite an overall reduced calorie intake.

I have found a trigger for me - alcohol.  It triggers cravings like no ones business. It is really frustrating. So much so that I would rather not drink.  I plan to mainly socially drink, which is once or twice a month, and the occasional drink at home with the hubby.

Hopefully it keeps up!

Atkins Day 5

Ok, time for a little story.

Once upon a time...

Wait, that's not what I mean.

Let's call it a recounting of my journey over the last 3 or so years.

I have been trying to lose weight for 3 years.  I keep losing and gaining the same 20 lbs.  It sucks.  At one point, I gained a lot of traction when I was running like crazy and eating very little, but then I hurt my back and it was all over.  I gained it ALL back. 

I have tried every philosophy out there - eat less and move more, heal your gut, heal your thyroid, just be really good about eating less since that's what drops the weight, etc.  In the end, I have come to one conclusion, based on 3 years of experimenting:

You have to eat less and move more, but how that looks for each person is different.

For me, apparently, that is eating high protein and low carb.  I forgot how much being on Atkins doesn't really feel like a diet.  I don't know what's different this time, but I am ok with this.  I guess we'll have to see if I am actually losing weight though.

As I refreshed myself on the program, all the way through the final phase, I find myself excited to finish. I can't wait to get to the point where I have lost what I want to lose for now and just maintain.  I love that in the second to last phase, I get to reintroduce whole grains and fruits and really learn which ones work for me.

Right now, I am excited.  I am sure there will be days ahead where all I will want is a damn cookie (especially with the barrage of birthdays coming up), but for now I am good.

It is a start

I weighed in this morning. It was bad. Really bad. So bad that I don't even want to put the number up here yet. Partially because I know it is padded with PMS and back pain meds bloat, but still bad.

All I can do is move forward and care for myself.

Yoga tonight.

Second day of Atkins.

Move forward.