I've been doing some number crunching:

Since I started using Fitday PC (2/2/04), I'm easily averaging 2.4 lbs loss per week. I've already had to adjust my goal date from November 11 to October 1st, and then to Sept 1. Then I had to adjust it again to August 4 and finally to July 21. But at 2.4 lbs per week so far (and over the past month I've actually averaged 2.6 lbs per week), I'm now on track to hit my goal by July 4 (US Independance Day).

July 4 is 100 days away. It is rather hard to believe that 100 days from now I'll be thinking about maintaining weight instead of losing it. For all but at most 16 weeks out of the past 25 years (8 weeks in '83 and 8 weeks in '87) weight LOSS was something I was either thinking about or should have been thinking about. I'm kind of looking forward to spending the next 25 years looking at my weight on the scale each day and thinking about whether I'm doing what I need to be doing to maintain a normal body weight. I can hardly imagine what it would be like to be the same clothes size year after year.

I like the combination of lc, exercise, a good scale with body fat reading, and Fitday PC to keep a record of things. I really think I have all the tools I need to maintain my weight loss for good, provided that I make "maintaining my weight" the same kind of daily priority as going to work, feeding the dogs, balancing my checkbook, or any of my other basic daily habits. Independance Day is really going to be just that.

Lynda

That's amazing Lynda. I'm glad you keep resetting your goal instead of just allowing yourself a cushion or time to be lazy. Getting to maintenance will be a huge step for you and I wish you the best!

H

Wow! Congratulations! That is fantastic!

Valerie

Congrats!!!!!! Keep up the great work! You are inspiring!
Thanks
Jen

Excellent! Congratulations on the weight you've lost and seeing the light a bit closer at the end of the tunnel!

I would love to know your secrets to getting an average loss of 2.6 lbs per week. That is a great rate of loss!

Actually, I forgot to mention that in Sept 2003, when Dr. Phil was starting his weight loss challenge, I worked through the book and set a goal based on my rate of weight loss at the time, which 2 - 4 lbs per month (and meant I would get to goal in mid 2005 to early 2006). I was following my WOE to the letter and was convinced that I was weight loss resistant and destined to be a slow loser. My Dr. even said that I should be expected to stall after losing so much.

In Dec 2003 and early January of this year, I was just about totally stalled out, but I was watching Dr. Phil's team still losing. The only things that I could see that I was doing differently was portion control and amount of exercise.

I downloaded a trial version of several types of calorie tracking software, and started using CalorieKing as well as trying to get my walking upt to 10,000 steps a day average instead of 10,000 steps a day frequently. I started dropping weight within a week of doing that, and dropped the fastest I had since I first started LC.

I was all set to buy the CalorieKing software when I found the new Fitday PC version. I looked at all the screen shots on their site and bought it that day.

Fitday PC lets me record food AND exercise, and I set an initial goal of 1.5 lbs per week (which was my fastest recent loss rate at that time.) That was the Nov 1 goal. I told myself that I was going to judge sucess by whether my daily calorie deficit met my goal deficit, and not on either calories in or out or weight. I also decided that it was healthiest for me to eat plenty and exercise more rather than eat too little.

I weigh and measure everything, and the quality of food I eat has improved since Fitday PC also tracks vitamin content and such. Instead of a spoon of sour cream with a dash of vanilla for a snack, I might have some nuts, or a bit of cheese and some veg because I like to be able to look at my RDA nutrients chart and see that I've got a nice balance of healthy nutrition. I'm better at consistent exercise (averaging 13,000 steps per day now) because that's what it takes to get that goal deficit every day, and I don't want to cut calories by getting rid of nutritious food. Portion control is a big deal for me. Lunch is 4 oz ground beef, 4 oz green beans and 1 oz cheddar cheese. If it is 4.1 oz beef, 4.3 oz green beans, and 1.05 oz cheese, that's what gets logged into Fitday - and those calories get counted.

This really works for me. I caught a stall starting about a week and a half ago, by seeing that my weigh loss was level for 5 days while calorie deficit was the same. I pulled up a chart of my daily carb intake, and I had climbed enough to at least cause water retention, and to even slow loss.

Measuring food quantity really makes a difference. I've got a work dinner next week at a top notch place with giant seefood buffet. I'm planning that one in advance. Depending on what I eat earlier in the day, dinner will be a generous 2 cups of salad greens topped with either 5 - 8 oz of fish (less if it has sauce or oil on it) or 4 - 6 oz chicken or beef. I've measured enough to actually know what .5 or 1 oz of bread or desert look like, and what kind of calorie kick they pack, and I doubt that they'll have anything that's worth eating at 100 calories per sliver and 20 - 25 net carbs! If they do, I better not have my evening 1 oz of nuts (pre measured and bagged before travel), and I sure better not have anything but super low carb stuff earlier that day or the day after (and I'll be relying on Subway's accurate portion sizing and nutrition info for most travel meals).

I used to think that it was cool that I could lose weight on low carb without micromanaging food, nutrition or exercise - and that did work for a while. But now, I actually enjoy take-charge calorie management if it is going to pay off with weight loss, energy level and health benefits like this. I don't really think about "whether" a food, or exercise time off, or anything else fits into my plan, I assume it all can - and if I fit those choices in I need to plan things in a way that they fit in without compromising my calorie deficit, carb goals, or exercise needs. I won't, though, make those choices without planning in advance how I'm going to manage them. The biggest mistake I could make from here on out is to think that my weight can manage itself. I think I've proven to myself for enough years just how well that works. I also think that even though folks can pick apart calorie theory to some degree, it really does work better (at least for me) than other techniques for judging intake and output.

Lynda

CONGRATULATIONS Lynda!

You have done such an amazing job! That goal date is just around the corner!

I can relate about the measuring. I've been losing so slowly even with 5 days a week of exercise and watching carbs and calories. It's really helpful to see the actual numbers in Fitday!

Cheers!

Lynda, thank you for your post. Certainly gives me something to think about. I've been losing slowly lately and have a million theories as to why and how come and how to fix it. Maybe it is just really as simple as calories in vs calories out.

I have to say though, I've found the fitday.com activity calculator to calculate really low on calories burned. Do you know if Fitday PC uses the same figures or calculations?

Congrats again, Lynda, that's great!

Valerie

Lynda,

Congratulations on doing so well! I also have found that although I didn't in the beginning, I now need to much more carefully watch my portion size/calories/exercise. After not losing any weight between mid-December and late February, I started very carefully monitoring portions about a month ago and have since dropped eight pounds from 257 to 249 in about four weeks, which averages out to two pounds a week.

Valerie-

Here's how I log calories in Fitday PC.

You can set up a typical day, which is used as your baseline activity for any day. I set mine to 8 hours of sleep and 16 hours sitting.

Then you can enter specific activites. The software decreases the number of minutes charged to "typical day" for evey minute of "logged activity".

You can make custom activites. Since I wear my pedometer all day, and it calculates a calorie count (based on steps and my current weight), I enter those calories as my logged calories. I did this by making an activity called "excercise - 5 calories per minute" and entering however many minutes I need to match up with my pedometer calorie total.

If I do any decent amount of exercise that wouldn't show on a pedometer (like pilates or bike riding), I take my pedometer off while exercising and log the minutes of that activity in Fitday. For stuff like jump roping, I just use the pedometer count.

The numbers seem pretty accurate and my current 2.6 lbs per week is what you'd expect averaging a 1300 calorie deficit. I think my initial rate was a little slower because I was increasing exercise and added several lbs of muscle (calculated from lean/fat readings on the scale.) In fact, let's check: 66,768 cal deficit should be 19 lbs. Actual loss, 17.1 lbs, but that was 20.2 lbs of fat loss and 3.1 lbs of lean muscle gain. I'm pretty impressed with how accurate this stuff is. It also makes me really respect the potential risk a sedentary lifestyle (if I ever were to go back to one) could have on maintenance. No wonder I didn't do well in the past when I exercised during weight loss and gave it up at goal.

Lynda

Lynda, Thanks for such a well-thought-out and presented post. I have certainly found the same points and actions to be true for me. I can't match your rate of loss -- I'm trying, but I think you are going to leave me in your dust! But I certainly think that to be successful in the long run, you have a very solid approach! Kudos!

Lynda, that's great. I'm so impressed. Especially that you were losing slowly and that these changes improved your rate of weight loss so drastically.

You've given me a lot to think about. I do agree that cutting back too far on food isn't a good idea (at least for me), I'd rather eat enough to not feel deprived (and I do worry about depressing my metabolism by going too low on the calories. What has been missing is the exercise. I guess I've finally hit the point where low-carbing alone, especially without calorie counting, won't be enough and I'll have to add exercise.

Valerie

Lynda, thanks for sharing this with us! And I'm so happy for you that you have found what works. It's very motivational and gives me a lot of food for thought, too.

Wow! This is fantastic Lynda!! Way to go on getting your life under control!! Very, very impressive! So amazing in fact, that I've copied everything you said here and have emailed it to my wife to read! She has always had a hard time losing weight even though she tries very hard to eat right and exercise (sometimes a LOT). I think your approach would really work for her, so thanks!

Personally, I dread all that portion counting myself. So far, I haven't had a problem though, and my weight loss has gone fairly well (as proven by the plots of my weight loss). But, if I stall out like you had, then I know I'll just have to bear it and do it anyway!

Thanks so much again for writing about what you are doing!