Well, That's Depressing

Today, while I was just watching stuff run at work, I decided to look up calorie burn for the exercise equipment. See, I didn't think the machines were right, that maybe they just don't have the right information when someone weighs 400 pounds. How could I be busting my ass and burning so few calories? The answers I found were even more depressing. Turns out that most exercise machines overestimate calorie burn by up to 30%. Turns out that my 15 minutes on the bike at a medium-ish level only burns about 190 calories.

Hmm.

I had to estimate what I burn with Walk Away The Pounds--I do a mile at a time, and a mile is generally 15 minutes of the workout. So I just looked up 15 minutes of walking at 4 MPH. This is also somewhere between 150-190, I don't remember what the actual count was.

I couldn't find the elliptical, but since I only do it for 5 minutes, it doesn't matter too much (and it STILL kicks my ass).

So now I have some serious thinking to do. What is the point of rushing to get to the gym, have to change, worry about getting locked in the gym, and getting home late when I'm only burning let's say 250 total at the gym? Is it worth it? A pound is 3500 calories, so it doesn't seem like it. Would I be better off just doing Walk Away The Pounds at home instead of going down to the gym?

Let me know if you have any thoughts on this, I really need some guidance right about now, and this isn't the type of help I could get from my nutritionist.

Of course, now that I'm back on my "diet," there's a ton of new snack foods and cookies in the office. Temptation is a bitch. I did eat 2 granola bars today, but mostly just to get them out of my desk and be rid of them (yes, I should have given them away instead of eating them myself). I also drank 40 oz. of Crystal Light in the office, really going to try to make it to 64 by the end of the night. I realized that it's REALLY hard for me to drink that much during the day, I'm usually focused on other things, and when I put the cap on my bottle for lunch (no drinking before and after meals--at least one Lap-Band rule I try to follow pretty well) I usually forget to drink again until maybe 2 hours afterward.

The bike is getting easier and easier for me. I put my new gym shoes on today (I only wore them the first day and my feet hurt too much to wear them again last week), my feet still hurt, but I made myself finish my routine. The elliptical isn't getting easier though. I find myself dreading it, and I don't know what to do. My heartrate goes up a LOT more than it is during the bike, so I don't know if I should just go longer on the bike or stick out the 5 mins on the elliptical.

I did borrow an idea from Gloucester and bought some stickers for my calender for the days I work out. I got 2 different kinds: one for days I go to the gym, and one for days I do Walk Away The Pounds. I need an incentive of some sort, or it'll be too easy to skip a day here and there.

Not A Great Weekend

I DID work out both Saturday and today, so at least I did something right this weekend. On the other hand, though, I ate like crap. I had LOTS of Pringles...I got them for my husband but it is true--once you pop, you can't stop. Well okay, I didn't have too bad of a weekend besides the Pringles, but I still feel cruddy about it.

Plus, I was good at the grocery store. They had Oreos on sale REALLY cheap, and I put a pack of the Double Stuf Mint in my cart. About halfway through the store, I put them back. Resisting temptation at the grocery store has been my biggest success so far, I've been pretty good about it the last few months.

I figured out a way to satisfy my never-ending addiction to Strawberry Shortcake. I got a bag of frozen strawberries (no sugar added, 50 calories a serving) and some fat-free Cool Whip (20 calories a serving). The Cool Whip makes up for no sugar on the strawberries, and it's actually pretty filling. I can live with that instead of the cake!

Tomorrow absolutely starts my "Cut the Crap" week. No snacks, no sweets, no caloric beverages, and another big change I have to make--no breakfast burritos from the cafeteria at work. I HAVE to stick to oatmeal. It's the difference between 150-250 calories for the oatmeal and the 800+ for the burrito. That's GOTTA go.

Friday had better yield better results this week!

Yep! Did it again!

Yes indeed, I still made it to the gym again tonight. I had an interruption though...all of the women's restrooms were covered up and taped off because they were going to repaint them tonight or this weekend. I tried holding it when I started to ride the bike. About 4 minutes into it, I realized the leg movements + full bladder just wasn't going to work! I asked the guys who were in the gym and the men's rooms were covered too. So I went back into the locker room and uncovered one of the toilets. Sorry guys, you really shouldn't block access to every bathroom in the building when people are still in it!

I'm really really frustrated though. I weighed myself tonight and I'm still 411.6. I was 410.8 last Wednesday. I've been working out every day since Monday and (mostly) watching what I eat. So why did I gain a pound this week? Well, 1 pound net gain, I was up to 414 Tuesday and back down to 411 Wednesday. I know I'm not working out MUCH, but come on, I'm over 400 pounds and even that little bit should have shed some weight.

I'm not going to weigh myself again until next Friday. I'm going to, as the "Shrinking Violets" on LBT say, CUT THE CRAP!, keep working out, and see what happens in another week. I'm seriously disheartened though. I've been working so hard and I don't think I'm going to make my goal by my birthday.

Yay For Me!

I actually got up this morning and did a workout. I don't know if it was the greatest idea; my body doesn't seem as ready to exercise in the morning. I finished a full mile though (Walk Away The Pounds) and I guess we'll see how I feel throughout the day. Still going to the gym tonight!

Grrr!

I didn't get out of work until about 6:20 tonight...and if you've been following, that means the gym closed at 6 PM and I couldn't get in. I was so proud of myself for going and looking forward to it everyday. Today was incredibly busy and stressful and I was actually hoping I could work out and (strangely) relax from it. Now my neck is achy from staring at the computer in a very tense position and I just don't feel as good physically. I'm going to try to squeeze in a workout tonight here at home with Walk Away The Pounds. I ate right when I got home, so I have to wait awhile before I can work out. If I don't do it tonight, I'll get up early tomorrow and do it. Tomorrow I have another coworker with me so I shouldn't be as busy and get to leave on time and get my ass kicked in the gym.

I'm a little nervous. I had my fill yesterday and I was taking it easy last night and today with food because usually I have pretty good restriction after my fills, even if it's only for a week or so. Tonight I got Chinese food and normally I eat 1 egg roll, a few crabmeat rangoons, and by then I'm already feeling the beginnings of fullness. I eat the broccoli out of my chicken & broccoli (comes with rice), and then I'm usually too full and starting to hurt a bit. I leave the chicken and rice for another meal.

Tonight though...I was able to eat ALL of my chicken, broccoli, AND rice. And I didn't get the painful full feeling at all. I'm getting really nervous that something is wrong. It happens with bandsters that days come that just about anything goes through the band, but I shouldn't be getting that right after a fill. I guess we'll see over the next few days.

You know you're losing weight when...

I got my third fill today of 1 cc, putting me up to 4 ccs in my band (which now my doctor thinks it's a 10 cc band). I asked my doctor about this lump I've been feeling on my left side under my ribs, I said I didn't know where my band actually was or if it moved or something. He felt the lump, looked at me very seriously, and said "That's a rib" and grinned. I haven't felt a rib through my skin in so long, I didn't even know what it was! So that's good news.

I had a protein shake for lunch after my fill and I wasn't too hungry until I got home. I did get to the gym again, and did my "normal" routine for the time being--15 mins on the bike, 5 mins on the elliptical. I felt like I was working different muscles today. Yesterday, my thighs were sore, today it was behind my knees and my calves a bit. My biggest soreness right now when I work out is my feet. I used my older shoes yesterday and today and it helped, I have to break in the new shoes before I can work out in them.

I noticed today that when I get home after working out, I don't complain about work as much as I usually do. It's nice not to feel so grumpy.

I got on the scale again tonight since I didn't eat much today (less food in my body) and went to the bathroom first, back down to 411.6. I'm still frustrated though because that's still a gain from last week and I really don't know how. Oh well. My mini-goal right now is to get under 400 by my birthday, which is April 9. At this rate I don't feel like I'll make it, but I gotta keep trying.

Sore Thighs and Scale Frustration

Yep, I made it to the gym again! I did a full 15 minutes on the bike (at Level 4, pretty good resistance) and 5 minutes on the elliptical. I noticed that these two machines work basically the exact same muscles in my thighs--and they ache right now. I think the 15-5 routine will be good for awhile until my body is ready to do more.

I got on the scale today and I nearly threw it out the window. Last week I was 410.4, and for some reason, I was 414.8 tonight. How? I haven't been eating much crap, I haven't been snacking, the only thing I drink is Crystal Light, and I've worked out the last 3 days in a row. How did I gain almost 4.5 pounds in less than a week? I hope it's just something weird with my scale, because otherwise I'm going to be really ticked if I worked so hard and GAINED weight. Yes, I know that 3 days of 15-20 minutes of exercise isn't going to drop much, but I shouldn't have gained anything, at least. WTF?

I'll weigh in again tomorrow, I think. I have my fill tomorrow too! Hurray for a protein shake for lunch.