Nutrisystem Week 43 Weigh-In

As members of the Nutrisystem Nation Blogger Panel, Jai and I will be receiving the Nutrisystem program free of charge in order to share our honest opinions with you. Always consult with your physician before embarking on any weight loss or exercise program.

It’s our 43rd week on Nutrisystem!

Beeb’s Weigh-In:

Starting Weight: 164.5 lbs
Week 43 weight: 129.4 lbs
Total Weight Lost: 35.1 lbs
Goal Weight: 110 lbs

Jai’s Weigh-In:

Starting Weight: 217.5 lbs
Week 43 Weight: 169.6 lbs
Total Weight Lost: 47.9 lbs
Goal Weight: 158 lbs

Last week, I lost .4 pounds and Jai had a gain of 2.2 pounds. Although he had this fluctuation up, two pounds is well within the range of water weight so it’s not a big concern on one-week basis, and he and I are both just thrilled to be in new weight ranges – the 160s for him and 120s for me. These are big milestones for us both!

This was a “Holiday week” with Easter, so our eating was “Off” for a few days as we enjoyed Easter candy. One of the most powerful things about being on a program like Nutrisystem is that it makes it possible to keep up good habits for so long that you actually feel the difference. For example, after eating too much Easter candy all day, both Jai and I noticed that we felt kind a bit gross/sick to our stomachs, sluggish, tired, and a little mentally hazy. This actually makes you look forward to eating a regular, healthier meal later and makes you enjoy doing something active – that’s what makes the long-term difference, because when you can feel what a difference it makes, you make time for it. Intellectually, I knew that I felt awful from the way I ate and that it wasn’t healthy, so none of this is news; however, you don’t feel a difference right away when you start taking care of yourself, which is what makes it hard to keep up. I’ve spent plenty of time in the past making healthy freezer dinners, working out, and so on, but with the time investment required to do all of those things, it’s hard to keep it up if you feel like you can’t justify it. You can eat healthy for a few months and still feel lousy; it takes several months of consistent effort and weight loss until you really start to feel the benefits like having more energy, sleeping better, feeling less sickly, and so on. That’s what is so wonderful about Nutrisystem – since it’s done all of the hard work for me, it’s made it possible for Jai and I to stick it out and get to a point where we feel a million times better. Now that I can see how much more productive I am at work and life because of caring for myself better, I will make the time to take care of myself because the results are clear. Yes, working out or cooking healthy foods may mean less time for extra work projects, but the increase in focus and productivity pays for itself, period. I couldn’t have known that until I had the opportunity to live this healthier lifestyle for so long, and Nutrisystem’s time-saving made that possible. Obviously, taking care of myself is what I SHOULD do regardless of how much better I can perform at work, but I’m sure most people reading this can relate to the sacrifices we feel forced into making in order to build a career and take care of our responsibilities. If that’s you, then I would like to offer the encouragement that you will be more productive from taking time out to care for your body – it just won’t be an overnight shift. That’s where Nutrisystem made it possible for Jai and I to continue healthy habits even while under duress with work and life.

And speaking of “Under duress”, oh boy, does that ever sum up this week. We are on the home stretch of our decade-long home renovations, which means we are tackling three of the main living areas. At the moment, my living room is completely empty for painting (Which was delayed by running out of paint unexpectedly), so my couch is in the middle of the kitchen next to my oven, and my kitchen table is hidden behind the entertainment center in my office. After all, when you renovate one room, the stuff has to go somewhere! Not having normal areas to sit, eat or put things away has put us under some understandable stress, but it is all more than worth it to take care of much-needed projects and cover up this ugly, 20-year-old paint.

In addition to the house discombobulation, I wrapped up some massive work projects last week, so it was just full-on in terms of my overall workload. It’s hard to really maintain a normal routine when things are this chaotic, because my schedule has been so off. I only got to the gym twice last week, and since we also had some “Non-program” food come in relating to other projects, we found ourselves eating off-plan more than intended. If a bag of spicy cheddar popcorn shows up on my doorstop when I’m exhausted, I can’t guarantee that I won’t eat it! 😉 Jai also went to the store for me to get PowerFuels & SmartCarbs since I couldn’t get there, and he may or may not have brought home some butter for popcorn while he was there. 😉 I think (Hope?) that this week will be a little easier on me schedule-wise, since it’s hard for me to get all my PowerFuels and SmartCarbs in when my schedule is all over the map, and that makes it hard for me to resist snacks like popcorn in the evening. But on the plus side, we’ve developed such good habits from Nutrisystem that even when we are indulging, we’re still doing it with a mind towards sane portions and overall intake. For example, if I’m eating a chocolate bunny from my Easter basket, I will choose to skip something like my Nutrisystem dessert. It’s still got way more calories/fat/sugars/etc than the Nutrisystem portions, so it’s not a “replacement”, but the point I’m making is that I try not to “Double-up” and eat large quantities even when I treat myself to something. I’m so grateful to have experienced Nutrisystem for such a long period of time and through a variety of holidays, since I feel like I have all the tools I need to know how to deal with regular life – holiday gatherings, chaotic schedules, parties, and the like. Success is not about eliminating all temptation – since I believe that is virtually impossible – but rather, about managing it in a sustainable way.

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