Jessica & Jen - Biggest Loser Million Pound Match Up: Blog

Week #7 - weigh in

Sun, 02 Mar 2008 22:00:07 GMT

So this week has flown by and I'm happy to report that the scale is moving for me again. I had a 1 pound weight loss this week (now 157). It's not much, but after seeing no results for the last two weeks I'll take it. I'm hoping that I have kick started my weight loss again and that I will have even bigger results this week.

~Jen

Week # 6 - weigh in

Tue, 26 Feb 2008 02:36:23 GMT

Well as suspected I had no weight loss for the week but the good news is I didn't gain either (still at 158). So I must be doing something right to maintain my 9 pound weight loss but I am determined to kick start my weight loss again for week #7. I have been stuck at 158 for 2 weeks now! I plan on mixing up my workouts this week and of course watching my calories and getting in enough water daily.

~Jen

Getting better....

Mon, 25 Feb 2008 21:16:46 GMT

I had a better week than last. Got in four workouts, three more than last week!! Although my goal has been 5 or more, I'm happy I got in almost that many this week. My eating was better too... kept the calories down. I was down 3.2 pounds... didn't quite recover fully from my 4 pound gain last week but I'm headed in the right direction!! I'm worried, because I'm starting on medication soon that I fear may cause weight gain. I guess I'll deal with that obstacle when it comes!

Week #6 - unmotivated

Sat, 23 Feb 2008 14:59:28 GMT

Yeah so this really has not been a good week for weight loss at all. I have been working a lot of hours at work and have been going in early so it has been cutting into my morning workouts this week. By the time I get home at night I am just tired and not motivated at all to work out. Ugh! I don't really expect to see any kind of results this week.

~ Jen

Week # 5 - Weigh in

Tue, 19 Feb 2008 01:24:46 GMT

Well I am just frustrated this time around - I had no weight loss for Week 5 (still 158)! I'm not sure why I didn't see any results this week, I got in a lot of workouts and thought I ate well too. There is no way I have hit a plateau already - I haven't lost that much weight yet. I'm not sure - I didn't do anything differently this week over the other weeks. I guess I'll just have to work harder in week 6 to see some results! :(

~Jen

STRESS!

Sun, 17 Feb 2008 22:39:28 GMT

I haven't quite figured out how to overcome emotional eating. I've had a whopper of a week. I won't go into details, but there's been one challenge after another. It seems I'll do really well and I'm really motivated for awhile, and then something happens that I deal with by eating. My question is... how do I stop falling in to this bad habit? There is always going to be stress in life - I can't change that. I'm frustrated because I haven't been able to completely change falling back into old habits. So, not only was the week bad in general... it is worse because I dealt with the bad by eating badly. I truly feel like I'm commited to changing my lifestyle.... but, wow, it's really tough when things aren't going your way. This starts a new week... so I guess I wipe the slate clean and try to have a better week. I really don't think it could be worse, so I guess I can only go up, right?? Jillian is big on dealing with the root of the problem.... the real reason why we have the habits we do. I guess I have to do some soul searching to find out what my "thing" is. Oh.... the scale.... well, I'm up 4 pounds. Lovely, huh?

Week #5

Sat, 16 Feb 2008 01:47:59 GMT

This has been a pretty good week - I've got in a lot of work outs and have been eating well. It felt especially good yesterday when one of my co-workers complimented me on my weight loss. She has been the first person to notice, it feel great! I'm hoping to have good results this week...guess we will find out on Sunday.

~Jen

Yay!

Mon, 11 Feb 2008 11:18:12 GMT

I had a good weigh in... I was sort of surprised but very happy! I did well this week but didn't expect such a significant loss! I am 150.2!! That's a loss of 4.8 pounds (and SOOOO close to the 140s)... I'm pumped! I have to be honest, my motivation was dwindling, but this is just what I needed to kick it back in to high gear!

Week #4 - Weigh in

Sun, 10 Feb 2008 19:34:24 GMT

Weigh in day - and I had great results this week, I'm down another 4 pounds (now 158)! It is a great feeling to be out of the 160's and I hope to never be back there again. Today starts the beginning of week #5, it is hard to believe Jess & I have been doing this for 5 weeks now. In such a short amount of time I feel much better about myself and I even feel healthier.

~Jen

Week #4

Fri, 08 Feb 2008 01:36:12 GMT

This week has gone by fast, but I feel like I say that about every week! I think I have been doing pretty good this week with exercising and I have been doing fairly well with eating so I hope to see some nice results on the scale this week. Not much else going on to report....

~Jen

Week #3 - weigh in

Tue, 05 Feb 2008 01:25:30 GMT

Well I was dreading weighing in this week after Jess & I's weekend of fun in St. Louis. While we got some exercise it was not nearly enough to burn off what we ate and drank. While the weekend was fun and it was great to see Jess and our other friend Julie I felt guilty for not having more self control this weekend. The good news (if you would consider it good) is I remained unchanged for the week (still at 162). So enough about last week - I am moving on and it is the start of a new week and I've got some work to do this week. I want to be in the 150's at this week's weigh in so I better get movin. I'm off to jump on the treadmill.

~Jen

Weigh in....

Mon, 04 Feb 2008 20:50:11 GMT

I knew this one was going to be bad. Jen and I went to St. Louis over the weekend for Mardi Gras. Even though we got a little exercise....(like walking ALL DAY on Saturday, and pushing my friends car out of the snow!)... there were lots of high calorie meals and beverages involved! I won't speak for both of us... but I didn't make the best decisions! So needless to say... I was up this week. I weighed in at 155.0, up 1.2 pounds from last week. I'm not going to dwell on it, though... we don't always make perfect decisions. I'm looking ahead... and I'm going to bust my a$$ this week to make up for it!!

Another week....

Thu, 31 Jan 2008 23:19:04 GMT

Almost another week has passed quickly by... I gotta tell ya, I'm having a hard time. The most difficult thing has been finding the time to work out. I haven't MADE the time, like I can and should! I could get up earlier... but I'm so sleepy in the morning! Then by the time I get home and settle down and get my daughter to bed, I'm completely drained of energy! I seriously go to bed at like 9:30!! How lame!

**EXCUSES!!**

I know from past experience if I get into a routine of working out every day I have much more energy and it becomes a lot easier to get up the motivation. My workouts have been sporadic the past couple weeks and I'm really dragging because of it (and noticing it on the scale, too!!) The healthy diet alone is not going to do it for me... I know that from past experience. Am I TRYING to fail?? What is wrong with me!?!? UGH!

Jen and I are travelling to St. Louis this weekend - Mardi Gras! (At least I think we are.... weather might not cooperate!) I'm glad we'll be together and can hopefully keep each other on track. Maybe she'll kick my butt into shape and get me back on the workout wagon!!

~Jess

Week # 3

Thu, 31 Jan 2008 02:03:07 GMT

This week is absolutely flying! Well this week has been a little rocky - I haven't worked out as much as I would have liked so far this week plus I'm going out of town this weekend so it will be difficult to not give in to my old habits of eating like crap and not exercising all weekend. I have two more days to get in good workouts before I head out of town. I know I just need to push myself in those workouts and to try to stay under control this weekend. I have lost 5 lbs in the last 2 weeks, and my weight seems to fluctuate easily so I don't want to go and waste all of that hard work by gaining the 5 lbs (and then some!) back this weekend.

~Jen

UGH!!

Mon, 28 Jan 2008 11:06:04 GMT

I weighed in yesterday but that's about the only time I got out of bed all day! I was sick as a dog! Feeling better today, but I'm pretty bummed about my results yesterday. I weighed 153.8... only down .6 pounds!! UGH... so frustrating! I felt like I did ok with sticking to my calories, but I didn't work out as much as I should have. This week I'll kick it up in hopes for better results on the scale! Jen... you did fantastic! Keep up the great work!

~Jess

End of Week #2 - Weigh in

Mon, 28 Jan 2008 01:49:11 GMT

Well it is Week #2 weigh in day - and I am proud to say I lost another 2.5 pounds this week (now 162) and I feel great! I was hoping for a little more weight loss this week but hey I am still happy with the 2.5 lbs. I know I keep saying this but it is just so nice to see the numbers going down on the scale for once. For week 3 - my goal for the weigh in is to be in the 150's! I've been doing great with the exercising but I feel there is room for improvement with food and eating. I need to eat smaller healthier portions and I am also going to try to each more times a day instead of just having 3 bigger meals.

~ Jen

Week #2

Fri, 25 Jan 2008 11:51:58 GMT

I too have had no time to blog this week on our site - the week has just flown by. I am glad today is Friday however my goal for the weekend is to say no to temptations. I can be good during the week but when the weekend rolls around it is a different story. As far as this week goes - I think I have done fairly well with excerise and drinking water but my pitfall has been trying to get in enough fruits and veggies. I just can't seem to get enough in. Anyone have any suggestions on how to get more fruits & veggies in my diet? I'm tempted to see what the scale will say for weigh in on Sunday... My personal goal is to lose at least 3 pounds this week!

Jess - Keep up the good work!

~ Jen

Yikes!

Fri, 25 Jan 2008 00:45:08 GMT

This week has flown by! I've so missed writing about my experiences.... it's theraputic and motivating to chronicle this journey and to read about other's experiences! I have had an exceptionally busy week and have not found the time to log on... I really need to do this to help my success so let's hope that doesn't happen again anytime soon! To sum up the last four days... I've done pretty well. I've been drinking the water, getting in the fruits and veggies, controlling my portions and getting in little spurts of activity when I have the chance. I think being busy helped because I wasn't thinking about food all the time... HA! I watched the show Tuesday... wow, I was surprised and sad to see the Pink team go. I really liked them and I was happy to see they have continued and had success at home! Ali looked especially great! I'm starting to FEEL great... but I can't wait until I (and others) start to SEE results! I'm off to do a little yoga and get some cleaning done.... Hopefully later I'll have a little time to update our site. Jen - hope things are going well your way!

~Jess

First week in the books - weigh in day #1

Sun, 20 Jan 2008 21:57:13 GMT

Today is our first weigh in day and I am proud to say I lost 2.5 lbs! For having such a sluggish metabolism in the past I feel like I have finally woken it up this week and the scale is starting to move in the right direction. The weekend definitely brings more temptations for me then during the week as I caved and had pizza late Friday night and had a piece of b-day cake (it was a small piece though) on Saturday.

Week #2 starts today and my goals are to drink more water this week and to continue the daily work outs of cardio and weight training. I did purchase The Biggest Loser Cardio Max & Power Sculpt DVDs last week and I love them! It totally kicked my butt. I have worked them into my routine to do the DVDs like every other day for now. I felt great last week and I'm excited to start another week!

Jen

This is what I needed!!!

Sun, 20 Jan 2008 14:14:58 GMT

Jen and I got a late start compared to a lot of the teams, so today is the day - our FIRST weigh-in! I can't say I was super excited when I woke up. I had some ups and downs this week so I wasn't sure how the scale was going to treat me. I feel like I lost a little, but as we all know from our weight loss adventures, that doesn't always reflect on the scale. So got up and decided to get it overwith right away. I almost didn't want to look! Much to my surprise.... 154.4 - WOOOHOOOO!!! I'm down 3.6 pounds!!!! In "Biggest Loser" terms, that's 2.28%. Considering I didn't have a "perfect" week, I'm pretty pumped!

I'm excited to see where Jen is this week.... she's been busting her a$$ even though she's had some personal challenges, and I hope the scale reflects that!

What I've learned this week:

You don't have to deprive yourself of everything you love.

In the past, if I ate something that I felt was "cheating", I'd figure I'd already blown the day so I may as well get the best of it. I would then eat whatever I wanted for the rest of the day. This week, there were a couple times when I ate something that made me feel guilty (a bagel from Panera on Friday, a piece of birthday cake yesterday). Instead of quitting for the day, I made adjustments to stay within my daily calorie intake goal. This was not easy, but I felt great by the end of the day. I know that if I REALLY want to indulge I can, but I will need to decide if the adjustments I will have to make are worth it or not! I think this is important lesson in changing your lifestyle vs. just dieting. It is not realistic to think you will never eat anything that is unhealthy so you have to learn how to handle it when you do!

~Jess

Good day!

Fri, 18 Jan 2008 11:35:47 GMT

Yesterday was a good day! I appreciate everyone's support... it helps me keep my eye on the prize. I stayed within my calorie limits and drank a lot more water than I have been. I still want to drink more... but one day at a time! I didn't get my workout in, but now my cyst is gone! I can get 3 workouts in before our weigh in on Sunday! Things are looking up! Hope everyone has a great day!

good start so far...

Thu, 17 Jan 2008 15:21:14 GMT

So I'm off to a good start on this challenge - I have worked out everyday and besides being sore (which is a good thing) I feel great. I am even getting up early to work out but I have had more energy this week than I used to when I slept in! My eating has also been very good - I am eager to weigh in on Sunday as I really think I have lost a least a couple pounds this week. And the number on the scale has not gone down (not even a couple pounds) in years! Yesterday was a good test for emotional eating - my fiancee got laid off from his job (slightly stressful) but I stayed out of the kitchen and did not eat even though I was totally craving something bad like potato chips or chocolate.

Jen

Bummer...

Thu, 17 Jan 2008 12:20:33 GMT

Yesterday didn't go as planned. I got super busy at work and didn't have time for that lunch time workout that I had planned. And the day went downhill from there. I ate the food I was supposed to, until a coworker convinced me to go to the cafeteria with her. I got a salad, but caved and got a big piece of homemade white bread with it. But I was still in my calorie range and had a light dinner planned, so thought it would be ok. I went to my moms to pick up my daughter and she had made some veggie soup. Better than what she normally makes so I decided to stay for dinner. The veggie soup had beef in it and she also made grilled cheese sandwiches.... with fattening velveeta cheese and loads of regular margarine. No one forced me to eat it, but I did. Ugh! I'm not sure why and I felt horrible afterword! When I got home I was in so much pain from my cyst that I just went to bed instead of redeeming myself and getting a workout in. I'm trying to be optomistic.... I'm still making better choices than I was making a couple weeks ago. And today is another day. I WILL do better today. I have two birthday parties this weekend... yikes! Life sure doesn't stop and make it easy to reach your weight loss goals! I often wonder how skinny people wolf down two pieces of cake and still manage to always remain skinny!

~Jess

Challenge for the day: Water, again! Like most of my plans for yesterday, this one didn't go so well. Today is a new day!

Wow!

Wed, 16 Jan 2008 11:12:34 GMT

If Bette Sue can work out like that, I should be able to work through the pain of one little cyst! I'm going to the gym at lunch, my bag is packed. I can do this! I'll just load up with advil and get moving! My goal for the day: Drink more water! I've been failing miserably at this important piece of the puzzle.... I'm addicted to Diet Pepsi! Today - MORE water, LESS Diet Pepsi!

~Jess

Tough Day...

Wed, 16 Jan 2008 01:09:42 GMT

Sort of a tough day today... on my way out the door my mom called to say she took dad to the ER during the night. He had chest pain and would be having a stress test this morning. He's already had open-heart surgery once, as has mom, so to hear the news is nerve-racking to say the least. I was already stressed because of a big meeting today at work. Can you say "Emotional Eating Trigger"?!? Then when I got to work I realized I forgot my food! Recipe for disaster! I did well though... I had already eaten breakfast at home, so I went home at lunch and ate well and grabbed my healthy snacks for the rest of the day. Phew! I made it through the meeting and the day without blowing it, and I found out on the way home dad is gonna be fine! Luckily, I had thrown away my christmas candy yesterday at work to prevent temptation! I've also learned to stay away from the kitchen at work where there are always yummy (fattening!) snacks galore!

~Jess

Challenge of the day: Beyond all the stress, I have also not been able to work out. I have a skin condition called Hidradenitis Supporativa that causes large painful cysts on my body. I always have them but can normally get around ok, but right now I have one in particular that is affecting my mobility. Hopefully it will go away soon because I can't wait to get back into my workout routine! Let's hope tomorrow is a better day! Off to watch the show!

So far so good...

Tue, 15 Jan 2008 02:31:41 GMT

So I have started the week out on a good foot by getting up at 5 AM and working out this morning. Back when I was fit and trim several years ago I used to do well with working out in the morning versus the evening. I am also hoping that working out in the morning will also help kick start my metabolism again. Jess & I are so excited to be able to do this together, I think we will make a good team even though we don't have the opportunity to cheer each other on in person.

Jen

Let's get this party started!

Mon, 14 Jan 2008 12:52:42 GMT

I'm so excited to begin this journey.... I feel like I have the tools and support to be successful with my weight loss this time. Like a lot of people, I have been in a neverending cycle of yo-yo diets and it's time for that to end! This time I'm making a commitment not only to lose weight, but to be healthy. I see my 5 year old daughter picking up some of my unhealthy habits and that has to stop now. I don't want her to struggle with weight as I have my entire life! With a family history of heart disease and Type 2 Diabetes, it is necessary for me to take control now! I see my mother facing multiple health issues and I know that I want to do everything I can to prevent myself from going down that same path! Even though Jen and I are not in the same city, it is nice to have her support and I think that will help me follow through and change my lifestyle.

In my commitment to be healthy, I have another goal to quit smoking. This will be a difficult one to acheive, but I will be blogging about my experience with this as well... hope you don't mind!

~Jess

My challenge for the day: Breakfast!

Over the past 3 or 4 months, I have been emotional eating a lot. My most difficult part of the day is breakfast. I have been going to the cafeteria at work and my standard has been a biscuit and gravy, two bacon, a hash brown patty. As if that's not enough, I'd throw in an Otis Spunkmeyer chocolate chip muffin too! This morning, I grabbed a muffin out of habit and made my way to the counter to order the rest. OOPS! I wasn't even thinking about it!! Luckily I remembered and grabbed oatmeal and some fresh fruit instead. PHEW! That was a close call!

The beginning...

Sun, 13 Jan 2008 22:12:58 GMT

Well today is the day I vow to start this journey and make changes in my life to lose weight and get healthy. It is time (far past time actually) for me to be facing this head on. As I look at my "before" pic plastered on our spaces page I am filled with so many emotions - I am embarrassed, ashamed, and disappointed with myself for just letting myself go like this. I have not always been this "plump" and I faintly remember what is was like when I was healthy and thinner. But to see this picture is good for me I think, I had refused to take a pic like that in the past when I "said" I was going to do something about my weight. This time is different though - I am fed up with my weight and appearance and I really want to do something about it.