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I just had a week where I did not lose much weight (1.1 lbs) and it was NOT depressing - in fact it was great!

It was great because although I did not get as much exercise/calorie burn in, I did continue to eat healthy and maintain a good calorie intake. Actually, my calorie intake was at or below my calorie burn each day.

Why is this so notable? First, because I am keeping track of calories in and calories out, I did not get in a bad mood if the scale did not report the expected weight loss. I knew without a doubt that it was just due to retention. Secondly, I was living like I was on a maintenance diet. I did not get a giving up attitude. This is a huge breakthrough in my mental and emotional conditions.

This past week gives me great hope that I can make being fit after fifty a healthy lifestyle and not just another diet.

I can do this - YES I CAN!!!!

I reported in my last post that I was keeping a daily chart of all my "daily values", my weight, measurements, calorie intake and calorie burn, etc. It actually has already proven valuable in that I do not get upset if the scale does not reflect my weight loss do to water retention, etc. because I KNOW what my energy balance has been.

For instance, last Saturday we went for a 52 mile bike ride and I burned 3824 calories during the ride. Remember, 3500 calories equals a pound. I also recorded that RMR (Resting Metabolic Rate) was 1376 calories so my total calorie burn for Saturday was 5200 calories! According to my chart, I consumed 1500 calories. So, my net result for Saturday was a deficit of 3700 calories. I lost over one pound in one day

In actuality, when I weighed myself the next day, the scale reported a loss of .9 pounds. I also knew that there was some water retention. The next day was Easter and I went to my sister's for diner. To be honest, I ate too much and did not get my usual amount of exercise. Also, I ate stuff that was outside of my diet so I expected to take a couple of days for my body to process it. To be honest though - I still reflected a small deficit in that I burned of slightly more calories than I consumed. So I knew without a doubt that I gained no weight. Monday's weigh in reflected exactly what I suspected about retention though - a weight gain. The one beautiful thing was I did not get upset. I knew that "it would all come out in the wash" so to speak.

Doing the "energy balance" numbers are sobering though. It is amazing that it literally takes only a few minutes to consume hundreds of calories and it takes hours to burn them off. It really makes me think about what I put into my mouth these days. It also makes me grateful that I found a hobby (cycling) that is also a great way to burn calories.

I can do this - YES I CAN!

I have been keeping a little notebook where I log in daily what I eat, my activities, calories burned (via heart rate monitor), and my weight for that day. So I have kind of had an idea about calories in and calories out. But this was not very precise.

I came upon some information on how to get your RMR (Resting Metabolic Rate) and a percentage of body fat to lean muscle weight.

I have made up a spread sheet to track my daily totals in a lot more details.

To see complete spreadsheet: EnergyBalanceChart.htm

This information is giving me a much more detailed picture of what progress I am making and also giving me more incite as to how I can predict my rate of weight loss based on adjusting the balance of calories eaten and calories burned.

As you can see I have just started this and if I find it to be valuable, I will try to find a way to make the graph and calculators convenient for others to use.

I can do this - YES I CAN!

I have lost and gained weight my whole life. In fact my most recent "quest for fitness" is quite frankly a miracle.

Our family started doing it's own "Biggest Loser" contest 3 years ago (in the summer of 2007). We all lost weight, actually a lot of weight, but most of us ended up putting weight back on. Last summer (2009), my nephew proposed doing another "Biggest Loser" contest. Truth be told I was not really interested.

I had resolved, in my mind, that I am just destined to be obese and that every attempt I had ever made to change that fact had been futile. So, when my nephew proposed yet another weight loss event, I told him I was not interested. But he was persistent so I reluctantly consented to open up to be "willing to be willing".

Well looking back on that conversation, it turned out to be a miracle in my life. Because that little mustard seed of an idea grew into a lasting endeavor to get fit and stay fit. I did not want to put this much time and effort into losing weight only to go back to being obese again. I began, right from the beginning, to think of how to make this into a lifestyle change. I started to look for ways to change my life to eat healthier and to replace my sedentary life with more daily activity.

My weight loss success (70 pounds since May 28, 2009) has been due to changes in both diet and exercise. I have put in an extreme amount of effort and in the back of mind I disparately want to find a lifestyle that I will maintain because I love what I am doing and I love the way I feel.

One thing I am totally excited about is that we have taken up cycling. It is so much fun and it comes with many of it's own rewards. As I mentioned, it is very fun. Also, everyone we pass as we are peddling along waves and says hello. At times we stop and talk with other cyclists. Last weekend we talked with another couple for more than a hour. It is like being in a secret club of healthy people. Now the biggest benefit, the icing on this cake, is that this is great EXERCISE.

This one new addition to my lifestyle gives me tremendous hope that I will be able to maintain my new found fitness.

I can do this - YES I CAN!

I just got off the phone with my sister and we were discussing one of our favorite television shows - The Biggest Loser. The last episode showed all of the remaining people going home for a week. During the episode it showed several contestants going out to eat in old favorite restaurants.

I'm sorry, but I would find that very difficult to do without being tempted to eat foods that are not healthy for me. I went shopping today and the smells from the deli in the store was driving me crazy. By the time I got home I was starving and I still had 2 hours before lunch.

Now I do have to admit that normally I am not bothered by the aromas at the store. But there have been times, like today, that I just felt hungry all day. Thankfully, I do not have food in the house that is bad for me to eat. So, I just try to keep real busy until my next meal time. I know that in some ways I am fortunate not to have to deal with the temptation of having food right in my house. Likewise, I go out of my way to steer clear of temptation when I go out.

Easter Sunday we are going to my sisters for diner. It should be OK because most of the people there are on a weight loss program as well.

I can do this - YES I CAN!