Week 8: Moving Up

Another week over and more loss. I lost another 0.8kg this week taking me down to 68.7kg. I really am very pleased because this has been another hit and miss week with regards to exercise. I did get my runs in on Tuesday and Saturday but other than that it was patchy. I have been feeling very lazy. I really have lost the plot a bit with regards to school. This week I should get my exercise in though. Mum and I have Vår Ruset on Tuesday evening and I want to get my run in in the morning as well. I also think I want to add another run into my week and do one on Thursdays as well.

Weekly Habits Round-Up: Find the unexpected opportunities.

As I said last week this weeks habits are already habits or simply not for me. So:

1) "Batch cook" a dish this week that can last 4-5 days.

I already do this. This is still true

2) Exercise entirely in 10-15 block of time this week.

I prefer to do longer blocks because I want to be able to shower afterwards. I did do this a little bit.

3) Exercise in one place that you normally wouldn't (the office, the yard, the garage) .

Okay this one I can do. I might run a different loop. I didn't really do this but I did go to town and counted the walking I did there.

This week I moved from Stage 2: Healthy Diet Habits to Stage 3: Lifestyle Change.

Stage 3: Lifestyle Change Overview
The point of this stage is to cement the changes. To make them part of your everyday life and not just a boom and bust way of living.

The three main parts of this stage are:

• Learn to find your own personal sources of motivation when you need them
  
• Transition to a new lifestyle where healthy habits are normal
  
• Continue involvement with the online community

Each strategy in this stage is two weeks long and designed to help motivate yourself. To help you understand yourself better. This stage calls for you to only track food once a week. I am going to continue tracking every day because I still need to cement what a portion looks like and how much I should be eating. I need to get that fixed firmly in my mind. I will probably take it a little bit less serious once I go to the states because I don't really want to be measuring at my friends and there will be far more meals eaten out, but for the time being I will continue counting at home.

The strategies That I will be following are:

1. What Will Keep You Motivated 17/5-30/5
2. It's Okay To Ask For Help 31/5-13/6
3. How To Reward Good Behaviour 14/6-27/6
4. You Can Overcome Setbacks 28/6-11/7
5. Is Emotional Eating A Problem 12/7-25/7

Each strategy is two weeks in order for you to put the changes into effect and really practice. By taking them slow you should be able to cement the techniques more firmly. In each two week period I am also going to go over one of the Stage 2 Habits as well. I think I need this since I will be away and it will be a way for me to further enforce these habits.

Lifestyle Change Strategy 1: What Will Keep You Motivated

Studies have shown that people who have goals are far more likely to succeed in life. This is very important in weight loss or actually in keeping the weight off permanently as it goes hand in hand with lifestyle change. In order for this to work one has to first find out what motivates you and then immerse yourself in those things. What motivates us changes from day to day but the overarching motivation should be a vision that does not let you quit. Often we get caught up in external visions that are not our own. If they are not our own they will not be as powerful. So over the next two weeks I will be finding out what motivates me!

Action Steps:

1. Do the Main Motivation Worksheet and hang up the result
2. Find a quote that you can use as a personal motto
3. Watch an inspiring movie

I want to do these at an even pace over the next two weeks so I will check where I am on them every other day. I want to try out a couple of different quotes and probably watch a couple of different movies. Starting tomorrow I will write something about each action step in my daily check in.

Revisiting Diet Stages
Habit 1: Control Portions

The action steps here were very concrete and one of them I definitely can't do again (I really don't need more measuring spoons). But what I can do over the next two weeks is:

• Ensure that the left overs get used
• Measure single servings

What I can also do from this strategy is:

• Make sure I use smaller plates and bowls. The food looks bigger.
• Order appetizers for entrées
• Take leftovers home if the portion is big
• Pay attention to what I eat (not in front of the tv)
• Pay attention to the serving sizes on labels.

So plan for the week: Bootcamp continues. Really must get better at doing the videos in the morning. Run Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday. Do something on the Wii Fit every day. Drink my water. Vår Ruset on Tuesday. Start working on the Motivation Worksheet. Start looking for quotes. Watch a movie. Pay attention to portion sizes.