I think I'm becoming a slave to my scale.

[Blessedfamily]

I check it several times a day, and I never take a day off from exercising. I need to lose 20 more pounds, and it's driving me nuts getting there.

 

I eat reasonably, and the weight is creeping off. (Last week I barely lost a pound.) I have to suck it up because I'm my kids' care giver, and I want them to enjoy their mother. But when they go to bed, it just hits me like a ton of bricks.

 

I NEVER miss a day. My knees ache. We have an extra loud of weekly laundry from my exercise clothes alone. It's not that I'm a fitness fiend (though I do enjoy being fitter). I JUST CAN"T STAND TO SEE THE NUMBERS ON THAT SCALE!

 

Well, today I don't feel like exercising. But I will, as soon as my clothes get tnrough in the dryer.

 

I'm not depressed or anything, just beat.:ack2:

[Garga]

I know the feeling, sister.

[Rosie_0801]

Your poor scales. They must need a day off.

You lose weight quickly at the start because most of it is water. Now you're losing slowly, you can tell you've got to the real work. (Real as in losing weight not water, and I'm not saying you haven't been working!) Try feeling proud that you've got this far and haven't given up yet.

Aching knees isn't a good sign. Try substituting some of your regular regime for something a bit less impact. If you jog, jog on grass instead of the footpath. That might help. Variety might help keep your enthusiasm up.

 

:grouphug:

Rosie- remembering when my mother asked me to hide her scales. It took her two years to find them :)

[Garga]

Yeah, the hurting knees aren't good. Maybe you could do some sort of ab work (crunches etc) and give your knees a break every now and then? Or just lift weights on the upper half and give the knees a break every coupla days.

[Ibbygirl]

I know sometimes you hit plateaus because the body is efficient and adjusts to the routine. I agree with changing the routine. If it were me personally I would stop the exercise altogether and go on a water only fast and just have a complete rest. I know not everyone is into fasting though, but it works for me. :)

[ConnieB]

Also remember, that depending on the extent of your exercising you could be building muscle to replace the fat. And since muscle weighs more than the fat did, it's actually possible to be eating right and exercising like a crazed woman and GAIN weight. Depressing, because we are so atuned to the scale being the be-all of losing weight and it's not. Like everything else the scale is a single indicator to a complex equation.

 

Some questions to ask yourself to see if your actions (both food and exercise wise) are having a positive effect other than the scale:

 

How are your clothes fitting? Are your pants a bit loser, that blouse doesn't stretch across your chest, you can sit more comfortably in that dress, etc.

 

How do you FEEL: Do you still wheeze going quickly up the steps at the library/mall, whereever? Do you find yourself with the stamina to do things that you didn't do as well before? Do you find yourself doing more phsyical things with your kids (sometimes this one takes some thinking, because you may not have taken note of the fact that now on the playground you do more than just push the kids in the swing and watch them....do you chase them around a little, do you get on the jungle jim with them, whatever).

 

How does your skin look and feel? Changing horrible eating habits will show marked improvement in the elasticity and condition of your skin, and make you feel brighter, more vibrant. If you were already eating well and just made a few changes, this may not be as apparent. For me, my skin looked years and years younger and no more blemishes. And softer than I remember it ever feeling.

 

Also, measure inches.....it's best to have done this from the beginning to see the changes.....but measure chest, waist, thighs (each), behind, and each forearm. As you lose weight you'll see the inches come down for waist, behind and possibly chest....but don't be surprised to see your thighs and forearms increase.....but the fat/skin won't be jiggly any more it will be firmer but possibly larger.

 

And realize that all experts suggest weighing yourself weekly, not daily, but concede that if you MUST weigh yourself daily do it ONCE per day, at the same time everyday. Most of us choose to do it immediately upon waking still in PJs or less (after going to the bathroom of course, as ever ounce counts). The other recommendation is to chart your weight loss on a graph (a great project for the kids, lol). This will show you the normal fluxuations that occur.

 

Most of all, just hang in there.....you seem to have great willpower to do your exercising even when you don't want to and that is saying a LOT.

 

One last suggestion.....since you apparently dislike forced/regimented exercise, see if you can't incorporate some exercise into your day in other ways so that you don't have to do the "stand here and exercise" routine. I hate having to take time out to get on the stepper or treadmill, even with a good audiobook or TV show to entertain me. But I have found that going outside and chasing the kids around playing ball or tag or whatever is more enjoyable and gets the heart pumping. Park your car at the farthest parking stall from the door on errands. We now walk the 1/2 mile or so to the park instead of driving. Go up stairs instead of using the elevator/escalator. Carry in the heavy stuff instead of having hubby do it, lol.

 

Good luck! It's not easy, but it is SOOO worth it in the end. Keep the goal in sight and don't let the bumps in the road block you from seeing your goals.

[Blessedfamily]

You mean 90 minutes of step aerobics 7 days a week might not be good for my knees? :tongue_smilie:

 

I have added 1 day of weight lifting. Everything else I know of is even more high impact than step, or requires an expensive machine. I just bought a new frig, so buying anything expensive isn't in the budget.

[Blessedfamily]

Connie,

 

You have hit on some things my family commented on, but I did not see. At Target, I told dd5 to hurry and she said, "I'm sorry, but you don't usually have so much energy." I froze and couldn't believe that came out of her mouth.

 

My mother came to visit and said "Wow, your skin looks good". DH had already said the same, but I thought he was just getting fresh.

 

Inches? They are coming off, but not as quickly in the areas I desperately need it. My weight went on from bottom to top and is coming off from top to bottom. I know that's normal, but I still can't my old clothes zipped at all. Very frustrating!

[Loupelou]

Yvette, Stop being a slave to your scale! I gave up mine a long time ago. If you must weigh yourself once a week at the same time, with the same clothes even. As long as the general trend is down you're doing great. Ditto about the water weight and the lean muscle mass, it's sits on your body leaner so the inches go but not necessarily the weight. Don't burn yourself out, get some variety in there.:D

[Peela]

It sounds like you are not being very kind to yourself. I bet your kids think you are beautiful - try and see yourself through their eyes. Or God's, if you think like that.

It always saddens me to read people really down on themselves for being overweight, and hurting themselves about losing weight.

[Friederike in Persia]

How about giving those scales to a friend for a while?

I ditched mine totally for over 10 years and I can tell you that my dh liked those 10 years a lot (the fretting decreased so much ;)

[TammyinTN]

Put that scale away and take 1 day a week off. You should always have a rest day..for knee pain I take Mobic and it works really well. I actually put my scale in the storage room in the basement and only weight 1 time a week now.

[Blessedfamily]

I skipped exercising yesterday, which means I'll probably do 2 workouts today. (My knees feel good today, but I'm generally sore from lifting weights.) Lately, the only time I don't do 2 is when I have something else physical to do like mow the lawn.

 

The neighbors might think my DH is a heel because they always watch me do the yard work. I actually enjoy it, except the gas fumes. :ack2:

 

I am really looking for more opportunities to work up a sweat aside from my workout.

[Anne]

I hope you're not going to do TWO sessions of 90-minute step aerobics! Really, that is not good for your knees! You don't want to be 50 and unable to do anything other than hobble!!

 

Do you have a bike? Can you walk your neighborhood? Is swimming an option?

 

I agree with the poster who said that our bodies adjust to the exercise we give them, and then don't burn as many calories. Changing your routine will be good for your body and help you lose weight.

 

Have you checked out Spark people? www.sparkpeople.com

 

Lots of great exercise and diet ideas there, as well as support forums.

 

Anne

[Blessedfamily]

I hope you're not going to do TWO sessions of 90-minute step aerobics! Really, that is not good for your knees! You don't want to be 50 and unable to do anything other than hobble!!

 

Do you have a bike? Can you walk your neighborhood? Is swimming an option?

 

I agree with the poster who said that our bodies adjust to the exercise we give them, and then don't burn as many calories. Changing your routine will be good for your body and help you lose weight.

 

Have you checked out Spark people? www.sparkpeople.com

 

Lots of great exercise and diet ideas there, as well as support forums.

 

Anne

 

I only do one 90 minute step and one 60 min. I did the 90 min a few hours ago, and I'm off to do my 60 min now. I may just do 45 min if I can work really hard.

 

About my knees- they are fine just walking. Whenever I climb the stairs (dozens of times a day) I have to hold onto the rail. THAT'S when they hurt.

 

You know, dd keeps suggesting a bike, but I can't imagine working up a real sweat biking. I do need a change desperately, so I'll look into Spark people.

[BalanceSeeker]

Coming from a lady whose tried every diet to lean up:

 

My first thought is that you don't want to lose weight quickly. Anything more than 1-2# per week (if you only have 20# to go) will be muscle/water/glycogen, all of which replenishes when you're no longer in a deficit.

 

Second, if you've been at this for 3 months or so, your body needs to take a couple of weeks off the diet at maintenance calories. A site like fitday.com will help you calculate mainenance (click on customize metabolism). A week or two at maintenance will give your metabolism a break and reset it. This is the main reason dieting initially yields great results - (plus the water you lose) - at that is having a metabolism not in conservation mode. You MAY gain a couple pounds at maintenance, but some will be replenished water and glycogen in your muscles and there won't be much fat. The water/glycogen will make your tissues feel fuller, but it will be negligable fat :) unless you are OVER maintenance calories. In the end, it is worthwhile because the plateau will break and when you get back on your plan, you'll start losing fat again. A break every 3 months or so is smart.

 

The body holds onto fat when you're over-doing it, be it exercise or limited calories, or both. Trust me, I've been down this road :tongue_smilie:

 

It's also a good idea to plug in calories from time to time on a site like fitday.com to really know where you are at; not too far over or under. A moderate reduction from maintenance is best or your body can really hold on.

 

Do you lift weights or just do cardio? I used to do cardio and was spinning my wheels, but when I switched to weights, long-distance walking (and sufficient protein and veggies and less sugar), it's much easier to stay lean. Not big, just lean and fit and it feels good :001_smile:

[Ohio12]

What are you eating? I always try to work out to stay thin, but unfortunately it seems like it is 80% food 20% exercise. I wish this wasn't the case for me, but it is. I would like to eat whatever I want and just exercise, but I have to really watch it on all those things I love like bread and sweets etc.

[Blessedfamily]

I lift weights only one or twice per week for an hour. I do the "Get Ripped" dvds by Jari Love that combine weight with High Intensity Cardio. On top of that I do the step aerobics.

 

 

I don't count calories, but I'm pretty sure I eat around 1800 calories per day. My diet is pretty regular- lean meat, vegs, a little fruit, and small portions of whole grain. The only thing I don't eat at all is corn and potatoes. I drink watered down fruit juice and skim milk.

[BalanceSeeker]

I lift weights only one or twice per week for an hour. I do the "Get Ripped" dvds by Jari Love that combine weight with High Intensity Cardio. On top of that I do the step aerobics.

 

 

I don't count calories, but I'm pretty sure I eat around 1800 calories per day. My diet is pretty regular- lean meat, vegs, a little fruit, and small portions of whole grain. The only thing I don't eat at all is corn and potatoes. I drink watered down fruit juice and skim milk.

 

Have you thought about keeping track for a week to see where your calories actually are? It seems like you could then problem-solve much better if you have that information to work with.