lose weight and keep it off

but I’m at 196.5 lbs at nearly 30 weeks, that’s 3 1/2 pounds total gain since I got pregnant. I’m a little worried, because my eating habits are not that great, but my daughter is apparently growing just fine. We’ll see what this trimester brings, as this is when she’ll really be working on her fat layer.

as I’ve gotten pregnant, and I think my OB will protest if I lose weight at this time.

I did manage to get down to 193 pounds (from 205), so at least I’m starting this pregnancy only 3 pounds higher than the last one.

Good luck to everyone, and I’ll start posting again in August!

I’m holding steady at 201. Not great by any means, but understandable given my slack in exercise, water intake, and several over-eating episodes. I have got to get disciplined about those foods that are my downfalls. I suppose I should be grateful that the weight hasn’t crept back up.

My plan is to get back on the treadmill, exercise the dog more often, and drink water more often when the “hunger” urge strikes.

and I clock in at 202.

Not bad, but not great, either. I need to step up the exercise and improve the quality of my calories.

I’ve just weighed myself again, and it’s worse. I’m just feeling really disgusted with myself right now, and a little angry at the husband. He keeps insisting on bringing unhealthy foods into this house, and I can’t resist these when I’m needy/depressed/hungry.

I just talked to him about buying a basic (no-frills) treadmill. That would save the hassle of having to travel to other neighborhoods for daily walks, and it’s definitely cheaper than joining Curves and figuring out a daycare/housework swap with the neighbor. So, I’ll be shopping on craigslist in the hopes of getting something reliable.

Still reading through You on a Diet; I’m getting the concepts just fine, but haven’t read what “the diet” is going to be yet. There’s mention of nuts, but I don’t like them, so I may be doomed from the start. I hope not.

and I’m mightily discouraged. The only time in my life that I’ve been bigger, is when I was very pregnant with my son, who is now 19 months old.

I’d lost all my pregnancy weight, plus another 10 pounds, within the first month after his birth. Being at 180 was pretty dang thrilling, but unfortunately, I couldn’t make it stick. My “trick” was to be too exhausted to eat (coupled with a clueless husband, and being geographically isolated from any friends that might have brought me meals), and as soon as my mother came out to help with the baby, I was able to eat more than protein bars and bagels.

As I understand it, studies have shown that rapid weight gain in between pregnancies doesn’t bode well in terms of avoiding development of gestational diabetes. Unfortunately, I’m too old to put off trying for our second child for a year in order to get my weight back down to the low 190’s (where I was when I got pregnant with Anthony). I believe that all I can do now is eat as healthily as I can, exercise when I can, and hope for the best.

I’ve pretty much cut out sodas from my diet, and I’ve been rejecting food that has “high fructose corn syrup” on the label. I’m going to start transitioning over to whole grain pastas, and I’m trying to up my fruit and vegetable consumption. I know there’s more to it than these little steps, but as usual, I’m having a hard time prioritizing my life.

On suggestion from a friend in the food supplement business (and a “second” from a friend who is reading it), I picked up a copy of “You on a Diet.” So, that moves onto Mt. TBR. I wish I could have multiple books going at once, but I suppose some of the same brain processes that got me through two degrees have either disappeared due to lack of use, or I’m just getting old.

I also have:
In the Kitchen with Rosie
Healthy Cooking for Two
1000 Vegetarian Recipes
AMA Family Cookbook
Weight Watchers Quick and Easy Menu Cookbook
Weight Watchers Meals in Minutes Cookbook
Susanne Somers’ Eat Cheat and Melt the Fat Away
Mediterranean Diet Cookbook

I think I need to set aside a big chunk of a day and go through some of these recipe books, figure out what meals I can replace, and then add some new recipes. I know that making things from scratch is going to be 200% healthier than the convenience food we eat now.

I probably could have held my weight around 140 for a good long while, but I must have picked up a case of the stupids on the drive from CA. The first thing I did after I’d found a place to live and 2 jobs to keep the dog in kibble was to place a personal ad in the local paper in search of a boyfriend. No excuses, I was lonely. As before, I did more eating out than was healthy, and time spent with the boyfriend was less time spent exercising. If memory serves, I got up to 160 again by the time he broke up with me after 10 months.

I believe I held steady around 160 through the next few boyfriends, then started dating my current husband in early 2001. More to follow next week, but I will say that in some ways, he’s the most nurturing man I’ve been with. Our first date was on his birthday, and he cooked more courses than any sane person would consider consuming.

When last we saw our heroine, she managed to save her marriage by dieting down to 125 pounds…

Unfortunately, over the next four years, my weight crept back up to the low 140’s. In 1989, I attended classes at a different college; this involved a driving commute, and the only exercise I got was walking to class. I also started eating “better” food, now that my husband was making money as a professional.

There were, of course, complaints made about everything that goes along with weight gain—not being sexy anymore, spending money on clothes I shouldn’t need, etc. This, among many other issues led to our divorce [surprise! not].

From what I remember, I held steady at 140 or so for a few years, then started gaining weight again when I moved in with my new boyfriend. I remember eating out a lot more often than I was used to. Exercise consisted of daily hikes in the nearby state forest with our dogs. On the weekends, we’d go to one beach or another and spend time walking. In spite of this, I still managed to gain 20 pounds by the time my boyfriend left me for someone else.

Strangely enough, I didn’t drown my sorrows in food—I actually lost my 20 “relationship pounds” and weighed about 140 by the time I’d moved to Texas 5 months after the breakup.

[next installment to follow after I’ve written more entries on my other goals]

When I graduated from high school, I weighed 125 pounds (this on a 5’2” frame). I’d just finished my running career with the track team, and did not (unfortunately) try out for the cross country team when I started college in the fall. I did manage to get some exercise by riding from the dorm to class during freshman year, then from my apartment to campus during sophomore year, plus the occasional aerobics class offered through the P.E. department.

Despite my best efforts to stay in shape, I managed to gain 10 pounds by the time the final fitting for my wedding dress came due in August of 1987. Over the course of my junior year, I gained another 5 pounds, and my then-husband declared that I was “getting too fat,” and suggested that I do something about it. I’d never had to diet before, so I chose one I thought I could get through easily enough. Also during that summer (in which I took two classes each during both summer sessions and worked part-time in our student-housing daycare), we joined a co-ed softball team. Looking back from this vantage point, I marvel at the energy I had back then.

My first week on the diet, I was allowed fruit, rice, and tomatoes. The second week, I got to add vegetables. Two weeks later, I could have white-meat chicken. I drank water and diet lemonade, but I did cheat by putting real sugar and a splash of milk in my morning coffee. Halfway through the end of the softball season, I’d lost my 15 pounds, and my teammates noticed. My husband was satisfied that he “had the girl he proposed to back.”

[next gain phase, to be continued]