weigh-ins

Three minutes

I can do a lot in three minutes:

• Play three games of Bejeweled Blitz
• Microwave bacon almost to my desired crispness
• Boil an egg (? I thought that took a lot longer, but not according to Mr. Google)
• Brush my teeth

Today, I can add run without stopping to that list. 

That’s right: I finished Week 3, Day 1 of C25K, which included two three-minute runs. I finished them both without stopping, even though that first three minutes d-r-a-g-g-e-d out forever. (Okay, the second one wasn’t much better.) I hope it gets easier, or I’ll never make it through that 20-minute run in Week 5.

Today’s workout stats:

Not too bad, even if I was a hot mess when I finished. Seriously — I can’t remember the last time I lost that much sweat. Probably not since the first weeks of Tina Reale’s Best Body Bootcamp.

Speaking of bootcamp, I wonder when the next one starts. Despite having all my bootcamp workouts printed out, I haven’t been able to push myself to do one since the program ended.

The scale wasn’t so kind to me Thursday morning, though. Even though I’m feeling fine and expected to see a number in the high 210s, I’m back up.

What, exactly, happened? I can’t begin to say.

I feel actually feel lighter and stronger and like I’ve been making good choices this week. My clothes even seem a little looser. Perhaps last weekend’s vacation indulgences (a couple of Frappuccinos, a cookie and way too many handfuls of those delicious TJ’s Chili-Lime Cashews) finally caught up with me? Maybe I just didn’t drink enough water Wednesday.

It could also be the difference in scales. I was back on my own trusty WW scale, instead of the one at the Boyfriend’s. Maybe my “the scale weighs 2.4 pounds too heavy” wasn’t as accurate as I thought. (I swear it’s correct, though. I hopped on that scale directly after weighing myself on my WW scale one morning and came up with a number exactly 2.4 pounds higher.)

Anyway … here’s where I remind myself that the number on the scale is just that: A number. It doesn’t measure my success or happiness, or my self-worth. If I feel like I’m on track, I just need to keep doing what I’m doing. The scale will catch up eventually.

Pep talk over.

Thursday morning’s kitchen time didn’t include the pancake breakfast I included in the day’s menu plan. I did, however, have time to make meatballs and cauliflower risotto — both of which are delicious.

I had five meatballs with 2 T of tomato sauce for lunch after writing time. Dinner was cauliflower risotto and ham salad in lettuce cups with a side of cucumber spears.

In between, I snacked on a couple of deviled eggs. Thank goodness this batch tasted better than the last one. The difference? I boiled these eggs myself.

That’s definitely the way to go, even if it’s not as convenient as the hard-boiled eggs in the deli.

Better yet, I’ll be able to eat more homemade meals. I have leftover ham salad, risotto and meatballs.

I love rediscovering home-cooking.

Right direction

Thank goodness the scale is still going in the right direction.

That’s right — I’m down another pound this week, even though I’m spending vacation at the Boyfriend’s and not hitting the veggie carbs as hard as “New Atkins for a New You” recommends.

In fact, my scale success without so many vegetables makes me wonder if I should permanently go back to the diet as written in “Atkins New Diet Revolution.” After all, that is the plan I followed when I lost 100+ pounds the first time. And it’s not like it’s bereft of veggies — I ate plenty of salads, green beans and zucchini.

So far, since restarting Atkins in May 2011, I’ve lost 39.4 pounds. While I’m glad they’re gone, that’s not the rate of loss I’d like to see. In October 2004, after being on the old Atkins plan for a year, I’d lost 100-ish pounds.

Sure, I’m a few years older now, so my metabolism is probably slower. But THAT much slower? I don’t think so.

Food for thought, my friends. Food for thought.

 

Bang-up weigh-in

After several weeks of little to no downward momentum, I’m pleased to report a loss today.

That’s right — I’m down 4.4 pounds.

Yeah, my body’s finally correcting for my little carb binge at the writer’s conference. That, and maybe the C25K workouts are helping … although I’ve only done two so far. It’s probably just getting back on track and drinking enough water to float a dinghy.

If only I could lose that much every week, I’d be at my goal in no time.