Week 141 Update

It was 04:50, 42º, overcast, with rain showers in the forecast, when I stepped up on Mr. Scale and he said, "185.5 pounds!"

It was nice not having to worry about where the scale was going to be this week. All of my daily weigh-ins were in my target range, and starting on Thursday, they fell to the middle of my target range.

Yesterday Jim was moved from the hospital to a rehab center. They wheeled him up into a van, locked the wheelchair down, and let him ride in the chair all the way over to the rehab. In rush hour traffic it took about an hour. I left work a little earlier than they left the hospital, but I had to drive for an hour and a half to get to the rehab. I arrived just as they were unloading Jim from the van. Dotti and Mom were each driving their cars, but they couldn't use the HOV (High Occupancy Vehicle) lane like the van driver did, so even though they left the hospital at the same time as the van, they didn't get there until Jim was already in his room. Last night Mom spent her first night sleeping in bed at our house. Hopefully she got a good night's sleep, because she really needed one.

I was happy to see that my average weight this week fell to 186.14 from 187.50. My average points fell also from 40.86 to 39.43. That was not enough to make a big difference in my weight. The main thing that changed was that my back started feeling somewhat better, and I could ease off on the pain meds.

I walked everyday at lunch this week, and though the times were not usually fast, I think that the consistency of walking every day was important.

Eating and Weight – Last Saturday I weighed 187.0 pounds. I ate 34.0 points. My weight held steady on Sunday at 187.0. I ate 40.0 points, and on Monday the scale once again said 187.0. I continued keeping my points low with 37.0. The scale also continued steady on Tuesday, saying 187.0. I ate 40.5 points, producing no change on the scale for Wednesday. I ate a little higher that day at 45.0 points, and the scale dropped 2 pounds to 185.0 on Thursday. I ate 42.5 points, and Friday the scale moved down to 184.5 pounds. Because of Jim's move, and other things going on, I didn't get to eat until late last night. So, even though I only ate 37.0 points yesterday, the scale moved up to 185.5 this morning. Still that is the best Saturday weigh-in that I have had since 2 days after Christmas.

Exercise – Once again I didn't get any exercise on the weekend last week. But starting Monday I got some exercise everyday.

Monday was a holiday for some people, so the roads had lighter than normal traffic in the morning, and I was able to get to work early enough to do a two-mile walk. I got it done in 26:31 and earned 6.04 aerobic points. At lunch I walked with my friend at work, and we did 2.5 miles in 39:58. That was good for 5.88 aerobic points. That made for 11.92 aerobic points early in the week. My goal was 35 aerobic points this week, so I made a pretty good dent in that on Monday.

Tuesday the traffic was a bit heavier, and I got to work in time to only do a 1.3-mile walk. It took me 17:14 to complete and gave me 3.58 aerobic points. At lunch, I once again did my 2.5 mile walk with my friend, and it took 40:00, giving me 5.87 aerobic points. That gave me 9.45 aerobic points for the day, and brought my week's total up to 21.37.

Wednesday the traffic had gotten even heavier and I only had time for a one-mile walk in the morning. It took 13:10 and gave me 2.55 aerobic points. At lunch we took a slightly different route for our walk and it shortened it a bit down to 2.25 miles. It took 38:00 and earned 4.74 aerobic points. That gave me 7.29 aerobic points for the day and moved my week's total up to 28.66. That was only 6.34 from my goal.

Thursday I had to stop and get gas on my way in to work and didn't get a morning walk in at all. At lunch we did our normal 2.5 mile walk, but in a slightly other than normal fashion. I got tied up with the delivery of a part about the time we were supposed to be leaving on our walk. There were three of us walking, and the third guy started off by himself thinking that my normal walking partner had already gotten on his way. When my friend saw that the guy was on his way, he set off to catch him. I was able to get going behind the others, just as my friend was getting around the corner a block away, and he was walking fast trying to catch the other guy. This was good for me because I got to open up and walk at my fast pace for a while. I caught them both at about the half mile point, and then I slowed down to walk the rest of the walk at the normal pace. It took 35:29 to do the 2.5-mile walk, and was good for 7.06 aerobic points, which brought my weekly total up to 35.72, and pushed me over the top for my weekly aerobic points goal. At 14.05 miles, I still was just short of my goal of walking 15 miles for the week.

Friday I left early from home, but once again was completely boxed in by the inability of Porlanders to drive in the rain. When it is raining, traffic just comes to a halt. You would think that people could handle a little rain in this part of the country, but they can't. By the time I arrived at work, there was insufficient time to do a walk. However, once again, we did a lunchtime walk of 2.5 miles in 40:00. That gave me an additional 5.87 aerobic points, bringing my total for the week up to 41.59, and my total miles for the week up to 16.55.

In addition to the walking, I did my back exercises at home this week on several days, and I think that helped with keeping the pain level down.

Water – I was happy with my water consumption this week. I drank at least 6 cups every day and on 5 of the days I was into double digits for the number of cups I drank. Overall I averaged drinking 86.86 ounces (10.9 cups) per day. That is over my minimum goal of 6-8 cups per day.

Week's Evaluation – I am very happy with this week! My weight finally came down, and I met my newly increased exercise goals. I did my back exercises for the first time in a while. I got in all my water, and was totally in control of my eating all week long. The way this week went gives me hope that next week might be even better!

2 years, 257 days OP; a lifetime to follow.

-Al-

6 '3" 239.5/185.5/185±2/BMI:23.19/WK-141
GRAPHS: Weight Loss/Year 1 Maint./Year 2 Maint./Year 3 Maint.
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