BFL Week 8 Update

I gained back 1.5 pounds this week putting me at 198 even. The program has taken a serious downturn. Due to recurring back pain, I did not complete a single workout during week eight (I went to TKD once and played softball). I did stick to the eating routine but we did not cook dinner even once during week eight either. I'm sure we ended up getting more calories than needed despite trying to make healthy food choices. Eating out is just nearly impossible to do in an entirely healthy manner, whether it's extra salt and butter on vegetables or bread made without whole grains. It's really quite frustrating because we've started to feel overwhelmed by just how much time it takes to cook and clean up every night, plus get food ready for the next day. Eating out is just, well, easier.

BFL Week 7 Update

Yea, we have some weight movement downwards. This week's number is down two pound to 196.5. Total fat loss at this point is 13 pounds! I missed another morning workout (aerobics) this week but went to TKD that evening so I think that makes up for it.

We also dined out on Saturday night and managed to find healthy choices and keep portions reasonable. The food half of the program continues to be easier to maintain than I had thought it would be. I don't feel tempted to cheat or snack on bad foods; I really don't crave much of anything. I'm very happy to be breaking my emotional bond with eating.

BFL Week 6 Update

We're now at the halfway mark! I am disappointed though because instead of losing three pounds this week, I've gained one, bringing my current weight to 198.5 pounds. I keep telling myself, this is a process and will take time but it's still somewhat discouraging. Overall, I definitely feel healthier and have more energy. However, on Thursday I missed my second workout due to, I believe, body fatigue. I just hurt and didn't want to get up. I got a massage later that afternoon and the masseuse worked on a knot in my right shoulder for at least 25 minutes and it didn't even budge! I went to TKD that evening to make up for the missed workout, though.

The food part of things is well on track. The only oddity is that because we tend to get up later on Saturdays, we're not getting in all six meals those days. I'm not sure how detrimental that is, if it throws our bodies into a fit or something. Anyway, I'm going to chock up part of this week's weight issues to bloating from my time of the month. I don't know if it's still possible to reach the 30 pound weight loss mark by week 12 now...

The Principles of Beautiful Web Design

I've finally finished reading The Principles of Beautiful Web Design by Jason Beaird (Sitepoint). And when I say finally, I mean finally. I think I started this book back in December! It's not a bad book by any means but it turned out to not be the in-depth "design" book I was looking for. It's a great how-to reference for anyone starting out in web design and gives the reader lots of points from laying out the basic grid to selecting photography. And it does cover the most basic of design points like using color and texture but doesn't go much below the surface of the vocabulary.

The most interesting take-away for me was from Chapter 1, "Layout and Composition," where he discusses the Rule of Thirds. I've started to notice in almost all design pieces this basic division of the composition. I also liked this line from the preface: "...the [website] design should be as intentional as the functionality." Little stings more to a designer than having people say we just "make things look pretty," as if design has no function of its own in usability.

I also liked how he ended the book, asking the readers to look to their own ideas for inspiration; "The most important thing you can bring to the design table is your own personality, experiences, and interests. These three resources should form the foundations of your design work." I have been more inspired to just go out on that limb and try some of my own design work and have recently redone my professional portfolio.

BFL Week 5 Update

Well the trend of losing weight on odd numbered weeks continues. I lost 2.5 pounds this week, bringing me below 200 again to 197.5. My progress is going a bit slower than I had anticipated. I'll need to lose 3 pounds to be down 15 at the halfway point (my goal is 30 pounds of fat loss during the program).

I had the actualization this week that my work on my body is just beginning. Even if I meet my weight loss goal during the program, I'll still have another ~35 pounds to lose just to be inside the "normal" range of my calculated BMI. Right now, I'm still easily in the obese range (which is still very hard for me to get my mind around). But I also have to remind myself that I put on these last forty pounds over the year prior to starting the program so it's not unrealistic to expect that it will take that long to get those plus the other 25 pounds off!

I've also started to really take note of just how many fat people are all around. It is of no surprise at all to me that the majority of Americans are overweight. While we're eating our turkey sandwiches at the mall, we look around and take note of what and how much the other people are eating and it's so unhealthy. Our society needs to learn portion control! And as one person put it to me, we need to grasp that food is fuel for our body, not a means to happiness, enjoyment or pleasure. Learning that has been part of my process as well because I was definitely a pleasure eater.

The other thing to note is just how badly we seem to feel on our free days. It's nice knowing we have one day a week we can eat anything we want but the desire to eat lots of bad stuff isn't really there and when we do eat poorly, we feel rundown and tired. And we eat so much less than we would have before. We almost always split any meal at a restaurant and even then it's usually too much food.

We missed our first workout of the program this week, sleeping in on Tuesday and not doing our aerobics training. I had fully planned to workout in the evening but we decided to play games with some friends instead. I don't feel too badly about it; real life happens, we just can't make skipping the norm! We also did not have TKD this week as the school was closed.