Completion of Week 20!

Today was the end of Week 20 and I have to admit, I'm really not happy about today's weigh in. I had a long and stressful week with work and trying to get settled in the house.

I followed the program for the most part, but I missed lunch a few days. I was working on the road and brought fruit and stuff with me for lunch. I ate dinner nearly every night. I have a protein shake for breakfast every morning. I'm eating, I'm drinking water (although, not enough) and I'm occasionally taking the meds. I don't take them regularly anymore, I forget or whatever.

I also finally have now set the Wii back up and can start working out again. It's been over a week since I got in a work-out and over two since I got in a "decent" one. Unless you count unpacking boxes and moving furniture.

So, why was I not happy about the weigh-in? I know you think I'm getting ready to tell you the "No Gain To Goal" ended, but, actually I lost 6.5 pounds. I was not overly surprised, I'd watched the scale all week, and I knew I'd have "a decent loss". I was really surprised when she said, "Congratulations, you lost 6.5 pounds!" It sort of caught me off guard until she said I was under 140 pounds and I had 4.5 pounds to goal.

I left there thinking that was just ridiculous. That was way too much weight to have lost in a week, twenty weeks into the program. It kind of consumed the rest of my day. Replaying my week, trying to figure out if I skipped meals, how many, what I actually ate, etc...

The program total as of today is 72.7 pounds in 139 days. My tracker on my iPhone indicates that's an average of -0.5 pounds per day. If you add the initial 25 pounds that I lost during the transition from Connecticut to Jacksonville to Tampa, that puts the grand total weight loss at 97.7 pounds since February, 2007.

It seems everyone today had something to say about the weigh-in as well. Please know that I'm really not happy about it, although I'm happy about being 4.5 pounds to goal, for sure. This week people have been telling me too that it might be time to stop. "Maybe it's time to say you've reached your goal." "You're too thin." "How much more are you going to lose?" "Are you eating? Are you purging?" and let me assure you, I am eating, I'm not purging. I have absolutely no desire to purge. I feel like I'm on the witness stand for a bulimic woman on trial, but y'all need to know that there is nothing I hate more than vomiting, so that's the last way I'd ever consider losing weight!!

So, here's the bottom line. I have 4.5 pounds to go to reach goal. I have a weigh in next Monday and the following Monday is Memorial Day. It'll be the first Monday I've not been able to weigh during the whole time. I'm thinking...that where ever I end up next Monday might be the final for me before starting maintenance. I can't weigh in on Memorial Day, the office is closed. I'm on vacation that week and thinking that might be a good transition week to maintenance. I guess at this point, or up to this point, we can call the program a success. My original goal date was July 4, 2009. That was also the original loss goal of 62.2 pounds.

All in all I've been extremely happy with the program. I'm definitely a supporter and definitely recommend it to anyone who is motivated enough to do it!

In closing I hope you all have an awesome week. I'm looking forward to mine, now that I'm done stressing about the amount of weight I lost last week. Time to look forward to better things!

In honor of achievement:
"The person who gets the farthest is generally the one who is willing to do and dare. The sure-thing boat never gets far from shore." –Dale Carnegie