Daily Bread #88

These pics are for Lindsay, who asked for them.  When I completed the 30 week “active phase” of the program she and several other program friends surprised me with 2 Tee shirts that said, “SRCH27 100% compliant – The others all cheated.”

They gave me two sizes, one 2x and one XL.  As you can see, they are both way too big now.   The pic below is me wearing the 2x on graduation day back in November of 2018.

I think one of the ways that I have managed to stay successful for a year and a half is that I kept losing after we stopped the meal replacements. If you can lose enough that you see some rewards, it is easier to keep going.  I kept dropping medications as I lost weight and I was able to stop using a C-Pap machine. That kept me motivated.  Of course, being “100% compliant” didn’t hurt either.  Over time, I became a different person, and not just in appearance but in how I live my life and pay attention to my body.  My mind, my body and my spirit have become more unified in both intention and in practice.

I am fond of saying that weight loss is just math.  Calories in vs calories out.  Mostly that works well, but it is more than math.  I am trying to wean myself off Tylenol PM and had a couple of nights of lousy sleep this week as a result.  The bursitis in my knee is particularly painful at night.  Sleep is important and I ate more on the days when I wasn’t well rested.  The body associates food with energy, so when you are tired you are hungrier. There is also the problem with the data.  I maybe underestimating the calories in, and FitBit may be overestimating the calories out.  The math results are only as good as the data that goes into the calculation.  Garbage in, garbage out, in other words.  It may be time for another resting metabolic rate test so that I can get better data in.

Still, only 1 pound up the week after a yummy Thanksgiving dinner and leftovers isn’t bad at all.  My weight at the end of last week was the lowest it has been in 30+ years so I am still trending down.

I really HATE not being able to exercise or walk very much.  The new knee joint works really well, but the bursitis needs lots of rest if it is going to heal.  So I do a bit on the stationary bike every day and the PT exercises that don’t stress my knee.  Without much exercise, it is actually amazing that I am maintaining my weight and not gaining.

It is hard not to obsess about the numbers on the scale. “I am just fine the way I am.”  Repeat as necessary.   Sometimes journeys end, and not always when we decide they are over.  Then again, this could simply be an interlude, a pause, and when I can take long walks again, I may eventually get below the “overweight” category and into “normal”.  What I know is that I feel healthy and I know how to eat now to stay that way.  I indulge sometimes (Thanksgiving), but am sensible with both my food choices and my portion sizes as a daily routine.

I am now maybe about 95% compliant. Still not complacent though.

L’Chaim!  This week’s stats: My Fitbit report shows 25403 steps last week for 10.7 miles.  I ate approximately 9373 calories and burned 12452 for a deficit of 3030. My average weight this week is up 1 pound from last week’s average for a total loss of 152.2.