Week 14 Progress Report: A Couple of Observations

This will be a short report:

Starting Weight:	262.4
Original Target*:	277.4
Adjusted Target:	260.6
Actual Weight:	259.4
Loss/Gain:	– 3.0
Total Loss:	43.2
% of Goal:	31.2%
Avg. Loss/Wk.:	– 3.1
*Original target calculated from a starting weight of 302.6 lbs. and an average loss/wk. of 1.8 lbs.

As I was logging my weekly weigh-in, I noticed that on the spreadsheet I created to track my weekly progress, I had originally stated my first goal to be at or under 250 lbs. by Sept. 1. At the time, it seemed reasonable because I’d only planned to lose 1.8 lbs./week. Besides, the last time I ran this program, it had taken me from Valentine’s Day to September 1, 2009 to lose 47 pounds. Fifty-three pound in roughly the same amount of time seemed optimistic but not unrealistic.

Now I’m on track to pass that goal by mid-June, a full two and a half months ahead of schedule. This also implies that I’ll meet my second original major goal, ≤ 225 by Jan. 1, about the beginning of October.

So far, the closest I’ve come to a plateau was in Week 12, when my weight didn’t vary more than 0.4 lbs./day and I only logged a loss of 0.8 lbs. for the week. That doesn’t mean that I won’t hit a longer stretch of insubstantial progress sometime in the next 3 – 6 months. I’m not worried about it, though. It’s just a matter of trusting the process: Eat less than you burn off and eventually, you will lose the weight. I’m much more concerned about self-sabotage — growing either too impatient or overconfident. Patience, determination, and humility aren’t my strong suits.

By the way, why do I set goals? People who live busier lives with more personal commitments may find goals and timelines counterproductive because they have to make more compromises with their weight-loss efforts. My commitments right now consist of writing, editing, and taking care of my mom (and, more often than not, my brother’s Jack Russell terrier). Setting goals and a timeline gives me something to do and ensures that, if I don’t make much progress, it’s not because I’m dicking off on my program. It helps me; it may or may not help you.

On a related note: For many years, I’ve avoided getting on my knees whenever possible. Getting down and back up again has required some kind of strong support against which I could push up. Besides, kneeling for any length of time has been uncomfortable if not painful, even on a church kneeler. But yesterday, while buying diet soda for the household (yes, yes, I know), I found that it no longer requires so much effort. I probably still have to lose at least 25 – 30 more pounds before I no longer need to push up against something, but it’s progress.