Posts Tagged ‘Stephanie’

Stephanie’s blog, part 8: Fifty pounds lost and counting. But maybe counting backward.

By Stephanie Category: Refreshing Stories , Weight

Stephanie was one of our winners in the Refresh You $5,000 Makeover for You and a Friend Contest. After starting the Very Low Calorie Diet Program and making it through the transition phases, she’s done very well. In fact, we changed her photo because the original one just doesn’t cut it anymore. Now she’s back to real food and ready to report more progress. Stephanie’s blog is 99.9% unedited. You’ll read it all, as it really is — the triumphs, the setbacks and the results. To read all of Stephanie’s blog entries, just use the word “Stephanie” in the search box in the upper right.

So it’s been a while since I wrote a post. Life certainly has a way of taking over and things have been a bit out of control for me. Work has been busy, I’m taking two classes right now, and let’s just throw a few holidays in for good measure. But that’s just real life.

At least part of the appeal of the weight management program was that it removed me from real life for a while. And while we all hope we can gain the skills to continue the journey in our every day world, we don’t actually know until we get there.

When I left you last, I was looking forward to starting back on real food. And when I did, it was just as great as I had hoped.

It wasn’t overwhelming, and it was very freeing to be making my own food choices again. I had lots of fun finding new ways to cook veggies and slowly, but surely, I added in other food groups.

Then, after three and a half weeks on real food, I had my first real test–a meeting and weigh-in with Toni the Nutritionist. And again, it was great. I hit 51.3 pounds lost! I have lost weight before, but I have never hit 50 pounds. I was proud of what I had done and determined to keep working towards my goals.

And then it happened. The first big derailment.

I’m not talking about a few extra calories. I’m talking about nearly two weeks of veering off the plan. It started the weekend before Thanksgiving with a night out with friends. You know, dinner and drinks. And while it should have ended there, it continued the next day. And the next. And then I thought, “Well, as soon as Thanksgiving is over, I’ll get back on my eating plan and start exercising again.”

It is truly terrifying how quickly old thought patterns can creep back into your life. And so here I am. The Sunday after Thanksgiving, promising myself that tomorrow is a new day and the perfect day to get back on track.

I know mistakes and bad decisions will happen. After all, being healthy will be something I need to work on every day for the rest of my life. The real test is how I handle these mistakes. Will I let myself spiral out of control until I’ve gained back that 50 pounds and then some? Or will I forgive myself, stay with it, and permanently change my life? (And hopefully next time, not wait two weeks to get back on track!)

Stay tuned to find out.

Oh and one more thing…I haven’t weighed myself since I met with Toni, and I don’t think I’m going to for a while. I meet with her again in two weeks, hopefully enough time to undo any damage I did. I need to keep pushing and continue to lose weight, but if I can maintain over the holidays, I will be in good shape. Wish me luck!

If you’re thinking about making a healthy change to improve your weight, getting started with the Dean Comprehensive Weight Management Program is easy. You begin by attending a free no-pressure-whatsoever information session. Here’s the schedule of times and locations. You can also call (608) 824-4457 or (800) 808-1190 for more information, or check out the Comprehensive Weight Management section of the Deancare.com website.

Stephanie’s blog, part 8. My goal: Run a 5k. My motivation: Beer tents. (Hey, you wanted honesty, you’re getting honesty.)

By Stephanie Category: Refreshing Stories , Weight

Stephanie was one of our winners in the Refresh You $5,000 Makeover for You and a Friend Contest. She’s in the midst of the Very Low Calorie Diet Program and doing remarkably well. In fact, she’s doing so well that we changed her photo — the original one just doesn’t cut it anymore. Stephanie’s blog is 99.9% unedited. You’ll read it all, as it really is — the triumphs, the setbacks and the results.

As I said in my last entry, my husband and I started a Couch to 5K program. It is basically a very slow and conservative program that helps you build up to running a 5K. (Do a Google search on C25K and you’ll find dozens of customizable programs. Actually, just click here and I’ll Google it for you in a new window. )

As well as I’ve been doing on my calorie intake, my calorie burning has been off to a slower start. Since I’m only on straight VLCD for another few weeks, I’m starting to panic about my lack of activity. Some of you might say that running a 5K is pretty ambitious. Why not start with a walking program?

So I am going to divulge the real reason. And stay with me, because I promise I have a point.

Summer in Wisconsin, in certain circles, is also known as beer tent season. Now I don’t plan my entire summer around which beer tent is hosted in which town. (Some of you do – you know who you are). But there are two or three that I like to attend with friends.

I was wondering… How can I justify spending an entire evening at a beer tent drinking and eating? Can I just never go again? Because to be completely honest, a beer tent is not the kind of activity that would still be fun if I were drinking soda. Amiright?

However, beer tents are generally tied to a community festival of sorts. And nearly every community festival includes some sort of fun run/walk. I’d feel a lot better about spending the night at a beer tent if I had run a 5K or even 10K earlier in the day.

If I complete this program, I should have no problem running in these events next summer. Eventually, I will meet my goal and I need to find ways to maintain that goal while living my life.

OK, the beer tent thing isn’t the only reason I want to run these events. It would also be a really big accomplishment for me — something I set out to do and finished. Something tangible that my family could watch me do and maybe even be involved in.

I’m already seeing results. After doing the program for one week, I lost 4.8 pounds. I’ve been averaging around 3 pounds per week throughout the entire VLCD, so it’s no mystery what gave me the extra push last week.

Now my grand total weight loss is just under 40 pounds. (I’m almost there!) Two more weeks until I get to eat real food! I’ll keep you posted!

Stephanie’s blog, part 7: Want to see her progress? Prepare to be impressed.

By Stephanie Category: Refreshing Stories , Weight

Stephanie was one of our winners in the Refresh You $5,000 Makeover for You and a Friend Contest. She’s in the midst of the Very Low Calorie Diet Program. As she and her husband Aaron journey through their makeovers, we’ll share their updates. Their blogs are 99.9% unedited. You’ll read it all, as it really is — the triumphs, the setbacks and the results.

To date I have lost 35 pounds on VLCD!! I have gone down 2-3 pants sizes (depending on the manufacturer). I have more energy and I am happier. I still have a lot of ground to cover, but for now, I’m focusing on my accomplishments and these are all very big accomplishments for me.

That being said, I have to admit, I’m getting pretty sick of shakes and bars. I only have three weeks left of nothing but shakes and bars, and then I head on to the dreaded transition. A lot of people in class are very worried about transition and past participants have shared with me how difficult transition is.

Maybe I’m being naïve, but I’m really looking forward to transition. It works by slowly swapping out bars and shakes for real food. In Week One, I will be allowed to eat 4 ounces of lean meat and a cup of vegetables with my reduced number of shakes and bars. Week Two, I’ll add fruit. Week Three, dairy. On so on. The bars and shakes were great for rapid weight loss and some mental reprogramming, but obviously, it isn’t permanent. I’m excited to apply what I’ve learned in class to real life. And I’ve definitely learned a lot.

Toni the Nutritionist, yet again, dropped a little gem on me last week that really hit home. She said calories should be treated like money – more specifically a checkbook. You have a limited number of dollars in your checking account (or calories per day). You can spend them however you’d like. But the best plan is usually to pay your bills first and then use what’s left for fun. When applied to food, you should always “spend” your calories on nutritious food that’s full of the things you need to be healthy. If you have calories left over, you can go ahead and have that cookie, or chips, or whatever. And of course, when you’ve spent all of your calories for the day, you’re done eating.

I suppose it is no surprise to anyone that I’ve never balanced my checkbook in my life and I really just ballpark it when it comes to how much money I have left to spend on things. Clearly, I have let that way of thinking dictate my eating habits as well.

That’s all for now. My husband and I started a Couch to 5K program this morning. In the next entry, I’ll fill you all in on how it’s going and why we chose that program (the reason may surprise you). Stay tuned!

If you’re thinking about making a healthy change to improve your weight, getting started with the Dean Comprehensive Weight Management Program is easy. You begin by attending a free no-pressure-whatsoever information session. Here’s the schedule of times and locations. Y0u can also call (608) 824-4457 or (800) 808-1190 for more information, or check out the Comprehensive Weight Management section of the Deancare.com website.

The last few weeks have been fairly uneventful. No crazy parties to attend, no family in town, and no work functions with giant spreads of food and drinks. So to spice up this entry, I’m including a photo. It’s not an after photo, because I’m not finished with this journey. It’s a progress photo. And it shows progress that I am very proud of. To date I have lost 35 pounds on VLCD!!! I have gone down 2-3 pants sizes (depending on the manufacturer). I have more energy and I am happier. I still have a lot of ground to cover, but for now, I’m focusing on my accomplishments and these are all very big accomplishments for me.

That being said, I have to admit, I’m getting pretty sick of shakes and bars. I only have three weeks left of shakes and bars only and then I head on to the dreaded transition. A lot of people in class are very worried about transition and past participants have shared with me how difficult transition is. Maybe I’m being naïve, but I’m really looking forward to transition. It works by slow swapping out bars and shakes for real food. In week one, I will be allowed to eat 4 oz of lean meat and a cup of vegetables with my reduced number of shakes and bars. Week two, I’ll add fruit. Week three, dairy. On so on. The bars and shakes were great for rapid weight loss and some mental reprogramming, but obviously, it isn’t permanent. I’m excited to apply what I’ve learned in class to real life. And I’ve definitely learned a lot.

Toni the nutritionist, yet again, dropped a little gem on me last week that really hit home. She said calories should be treated like money – more specifically a checkbook. You have a limited number of dollars in your checking account (or calories per day). You can spend them however you’d like. But the best plan is usually to pay your bills first and then use what’s left for fun. When applied to food, you should always “spend” your calories on nutritious food that’s full of the things you need to be healthy. If you have calories left over, you can go ahead and have that cookie, or chips, or whatever. And of course, when you’ve spent all of your calories for the day, you’re done eating. I suppose it is no surprise to anyone that I’ve never balanced my checkbook in my life and I really just ballpark it when it comes to how much money I have left to spend on things. Clearly, I have let that way of thinking dictate my eating habits as well.

Stephanie’s blog, part 6: Sure, I’m on the Very Low Calorie Diet, but my family isn’t.

By Stephanie Category: Refreshing Stories , Weight

So my husband’s family is about to arrive. This should be interesting.

Everything was going great. I was on the right track and feeling good about it. But as usual, life has a way of testing you. I’m guessing this will be one of those times.

My husband grew up in Wyoming and his entire family still lives out west. So a couple of times a year, they come out to visit and this time it was his parents, brother, and sister.

I was nervous about them coming since, like most people, when on vacation we normally spend a lot of time eating. This was like a vacation for them–they got on an airplane and everything. So I knew there would be lots of things they would want to eat. I tried to plan some activities that didn’t involve food, like hiking at Devil’s Lake or checking out some local outlet malls.

When they arrived, it became clear that they had already made some plans of their own, and just like I feared, almost all of them involved eating. In fact, I’m pretty sure we drove six hours round trip just so we could eat authentic Chicago deep dish pizza, hot dogs, and Italian beef sandwiches.

Here is a list of things I sat and watched people eat (and drink) during the four days they were here:

Wings, beer, deep-fried pickles, and other things from Quaker Steak and Lube
Assorted pastries from the New Glarus Bakery
Cheese and chocolate at the Cheese and Chocolate Haus
Beer tasting at the New Glarus Brewery
Burgers, chicken, fries, cheese curds and frozen custard at Culver’s
Cheese curds from the Cheese Cottage
Assorted sausages and other dried meat products
Fish fry
Brats, burgers, scallops, shrimp, beer, and other things while tailgating at Miller Park (not to mention cheese fries inside AGAIN!)
Deep dish pizza, hot dogs and Italian beef

My next meeting is tomorrow and I’m really hoping that my perseverance paid off. Stick around. I’ll keep you posted.

If you’re thinking about making a healthy change to improve your weight, getting started with the Dean Comprehensive Weight Management Program is easy. You begin by attending a free no-pressure-whatsoever information session. Here’s the schedule of times and locations. Y0u can also call (608) 824-4457 or (800) 808-1190 for more information, or check out the Comprehensive Weight Management section of the Deancare.com website.

Everything was going great. I was on the right track and feeling good about it. But as usual, life has a way of testing you. This time, the test came in the form of family visiting from out of state. My husband grew up in Wyoming and his entire family still lives out west. So a couple of times a year, they come out to visit and this time it was his parents, brother, and sister. I was nervous about them coming since, like most people, when on vacation we normally spend a lot of time eating. This was like a vacation for them – they got on an airplane and everything. So I knew there would be lots of things they would want to eat. I tried to plan some activities that didn’t involve food like hiking at Devil’s Lake or checking out some local outlet malls. But when they arrived, it became clear that they had already made some plans of their own and just like I feared, almost all of them involved eating. In fact, I’m pretty sure we drove six hours round trip just so we could eat authentic Chicago deep dish pizza, hot dogs, and Italian beef sandwiches.

Here is a list of things I sat and watched people eat over the four days they were here:

Wings, Beer, Deep Fried Pickles, etc at Quaker Steak and Lube

Assorted Pastries from the New Glarus Bakery

Cheese and Chocolate at the Cheese and Chocolate Haus

Beer Tasting at the New Glarus Brewery

Burgers, Chicken, Fries, Cheese curds, Ice Cream at Culver’s

Cheese curds from the Cheese Cottage

Assorted sausage and other dried meat products

Fish Fry

Brats, Burgers, Scallops, Shrimp, Beer, etc. tailgating at Miller Park (not to mention cheese fries inside AGAIN!)

Deep Dish Pizza, etc.

I really do love my in-laws and I genuinely enjoyed spending time with them, but I was relieved to go back to my routine. And I am proud to say that with the exception of ONE scallop and TWO cheese curds, I stayed completely on plan. My next meeting is tomorrow and I’m really hoping that my perseverance paid off. Stick around. I’ll keep you posted.

Stephanie’s blog, part 5: The breakdown arrives.

By Stephanie Category: Refreshing Stories , Weight

A lot has happened in the last few weeks. For the first time, I got a little off track, and probably not in the way you’d expect. I was skipping shakes. I’m supposed to have five a day and I was averaging about four, sometimes three. I was legitimately having a hard time fitting them in and I figured it couldn’t hurt too much, right? Wrong.
It showed up on weigh day. I lost two more pounds. That’s it. Two pounds.
I talked a lot with my doctor that day. (She’s actually quite entertaining and I’m not just saying that because I know she’ll read this.) She really stressed the importance of getting all of my product in and the importance of exercise. We set small goals: Get in every shake and take my son for a walk. They were easy, attainable goals and I left feeling like I had some work to do, but it would be OK.

Then I went home and cried. I was so frustrated with the results that I really started to question the program. The changes I’ve made are so extreme that I felt entitled to extreme results.

Oh, did I mention that my husband started watching what he was eating when I started the program? No? Well, he did, and he has already lost 20 pounds. I was coming in at about 17 pounds lost and he was at 20. It didn’t seem fair. No, it just plain wasn’t fair. He was eating real food and even had a two-beer-per-week allowance! I was eating shakes and bars.

So after I told him how much I hated him and he wasn’t allowed to lose anymore weight, I started to calm down and we talked. I know this is a long road. I’ve done this successfully before, but nothing ever stuck. I need this to be a permanent change. So I made up my mind to quit whining and push forward.

And it worked. I got all my shakes in over the next week and started getting more exercise in. Not necessarily formal exercise, but I started taking the stairs at work and went out of my way to take more steps. I was really feeling good and the scale was responding. At my next meeting I had lost over five more pounds!

At this point, my total pounds lost was 22.3! And I surpassed my husband!

But something even cooler started happening that week. I started getting comments. People who hadn’t seen me started asking if I’d lost weight. And those who knew about the program starting saying things like “I can tell you’ve lost weight” and “your hard work is really paying off.”

Some of my coworkers started to harass me about the pants I was wearing, calling them clown pants because they were clearly too big. I started pulling clothes out of the far back of the closet that hadn’t seen the light of day for months or even years. And I felt smaller. It was amazing. Nothing like progress to keep a girl motivated.

My husband’s family is going to be visiting soon. That’ll be a real test. I’ll tell you all about it soon, OK?

If you’re thinking about making a healthy change to improve your weight, getting started with the Dean Comprehensive Weight Management Program is easy. You begin by attending a free no-pressure-whatsoever information session. Here’s the schedule of times and locations. Y0u can also call (608) 824-4457 or (800) 808-1190 for more information, or check out the Comprehensive Weight Management section of the Deancare.com website.

Stephanie’s blog, part 4: Exercise, losing streaks and Miller Park.

By Stephanie Category: Refreshing Stories , Weight

Stephanie was one of our winners in the Refresh You $5,000 Makeover for You and a Friend Contest. After we met with Stephanie and her friend/husband Aaron (who’s going the refractive eye surgery route) we sheepishly asked them to blog about their experiences and tell their stories. They agreed, and as they journey through their makeovers, we’ll share their updates. Their blogs are 99.9% unedited.

On to Week Two! With the success of Week One, I was confident that the pounds would keep melting away and I would begin meeting some of my preliminary goals in no time! And Week Two was pretty easy. I had no major events and I was getting the hang of the program.

I got the go ahead from my doctor to start exercising in Week Two. I bought some new exercise DVDs. God forbid I go outside – there are bugs and heat and other people who might see me all sweaty and whatnot and we certainly couldn’t have that.

When the DVDs arrived I took them out of the package, read the inserts and then put them back in the box and never pulled them out again all week. I could give a million excuses as to why I didn’t exercise, but in the end, as always, I didn’t make it a priority. I planned to bring that up in the next meeting and see what others do to get and stay motivated.

Heading to my Week Two meeting, I was feeling good. I didn’t get the exercise in, but I stayed on course with eating and never deviated from the program. So I headed back to the scale and lost…drum roll please…

1.2 pounds.

Wait…what??? 1.2 pounds??? WHAT?!? I ate nothing but shakes and bars all week long! You have GOT to be kidding me!

OK…so maybe I should have exercised. And OK, so on average, I lost over 5 pounds a week over the last two weeks. That’s good. Frustrating, but I’m still on track, I guess. This will be a great motivator to get active next week.

I went back into the meeting. This week Toni the nutritionist was presenting and she did a really great job. I am – no was – a serial dieter, so I consider myself to be fairly well-versed in what one should and shouldn’t eat. But Toni had a way of reframing some of the things I already knew so that they made more sense to me. She is coming back in Week Three so I’m already looking forward to hearing from her again.

Week Three was also fairly easy. The shakes and bars are becoming the norm. I actually popped in those DVDs! They were HARD! I probably took a few more breaks than my perfectly sculpted virtual trainers would have liked, but I got my body moving and that’s what counts.

I did have one major roadblock in week three – a Brewers game.

I love sports. I love going to baseball games. I have never in my entire life attended a Brewers game without consuming a beer (or several) and a brat and probably some waffle fries covered in cheese sauce. Maybe even some Dippin’ Dots or warm cookies to round things out.

I gave this a lot of thought: Would baseball games even be fun if they didn’t include those things? I thought about why I like baseball and why I love the Brewers. It’s not because of the food and drink (although those are fun, too). It’s because I love the team and I enjoy the sport.

So I went to the game with my entire family, while my kids ate cheese fries and hot dogs. (Thanks again to my husband for not drinking – you certainly made my night easier.)

Then something crazy happened. I had a great time! The game was phenomenal. The Brewers came back from a two-run deficit in the bottom of the 9^th to win the game! It was a perfect night and it was just as much fun as any game I had ever been to. It is actually really fun to discover that events don’t have to be about food.

I have spent most of my life treating the consumption of food as an event. To celebrate something, I went out to eat. If we were bored on Friday night, we went out to eat. When we went on vacation, we actually spent time figuring out where the best (which pretty much meant the least healthy) places were to eat. But this time, we went to the ball park. We spent time together as a family. I ate nothing but a shake and a bar. And we had a great time.

Again, feeling like I could conquer whatever obstacle came my way, I headed to the Week Three meeting. Toni was back and took us on a virtual tour of a grocery store. Did you know that Peanut Butter Captain Crunch and Special K Red Berries are practically identical in terms of nutrition? Calories, fat, sugar, fiber, you name it! Read labels carefully, people!

My name was called and I headed back to the scale. This week I lost 3.8 pounds! Much better than last week! And for those of you keeping track, that gets me to a total of 14.2 pounds in three weeks!

Feeling good and moving forward. I’ll keep you posted about what happens next.

If you’re thinking about making a healthy change to improve your weight, getting started with the Dean Comprehensive Weight Management Program is easy. You begin by attending a free no-pressure-whatsoever information session. Here’s the schedule of times and locations. Y0u can also call (608) 824-4457 or (800) 808-1190 for more information, or check out the Comprehensive Weight Management section of the Deancare.com website.

Stephanie’s blog, part 3: The first week is done, and the results are in. One word sums it up: Wow.

By Stephanie Category: Refreshing Stories , Weight

Week one? Pffff! I nailed it!

If you’ve been following this blog, you know that the first few days of VLCD were pretty tough for me. I was hungry, irritable (I probably still owe my husband a few apologies), and worried. I wondered — can I really do this for twelve weeks?

Before long I was into the groove and things weren’t so bad. I wasn’t as hungry. I was a little more pleasant to be around. And I was proud of myself. It was hard, but I was doing it. I couldn’t wait to attend my first official group meeting.

I arrived at Dean Clinic – East and checked in for the meeting. It is there that you “order” your food supplies for the next week. I decided to heck with vanilla and strawberry shakes and went for all chocolate.

I also got a box of pretzels just in case there was a hunger emergency. The creators of this program really think ahead – they know there are times when you just need something to eat. And instead of cheating and throwing yourself out of ketosis*, they allow you one “extra” each day if necessary. The only catch is, they provide the extra. You can choose between pretzels, soup, vegetarian sloppy joe, and even nacho cheese pasta! Again, these are specially formulated to be low-calorie and nutritionally sound. That way I can feel like I ate some real food, but my doctors are still completely up to speed on what I’m putting into my body.

There were a few other newbies at the meeting and I was relieved I wasn’t the only one. We chatted a bit before class and I was a bit surprised at what I saw. Don’t ask me why, but I was expecting people in class to be really big. My classmates, however, came in all shapes and sizes. You can qualify for VLCD if you generally have 30 or more pounds to lose, so it made sense that there were some people in class who looked to be very near their ultimate goal weight. It was encouraging to see that people were succeeding and happy several weeks into the program!

This particular class was led by a Dean physical therapist. He walked us through some stretches and made suggestions for exercise routines. He also talked about how to deal with injuries and sore muscles as many of us haven’t been part of a regular exercise program in quite some time. We also got some good handouts on how to add steps throughout the day, and (when we start transitioning back to food) how to cut calories with small changes.

And then my name was called. I went back to the scale and…drum roll please…I lost 9.3 pounds!

It was such a relief to see that the hard work had paid off. And hey, if I keep losing 9 pounds a week, I’ll reach my goal in no time! Okay, okay, I don’t really expect to lose that kind of weight each week, but a girl can dream, right?

So motivated and feeling great, I’m moving on to week two. I got the go-ahead to start exercising so my plan is to start working that in this week. I’m excited and positive and I can’t wait to see what next week brings.

Check back with me then, OK?

*A diet of less than 1,000 calories causes your body to enter ketosis, where you burn fat for energy instead of carbohydrates. Ketosis is one of the keys of VLCD.

If you’re thinking about making a healthy change to improve your weight, getting started with the Dean Comprehensive Weight Management Program is easy. You begin by attending a free no-pressure-whatsoever information session. Here’s the schedule of times and locations. Y0u can also call (608) 824-4457 or (800) 808-1190 for more information, or check out the Comprehensive Weight Management section of the Deancare.com website.

Stephanie’s blog, part 2: As the program starts, welcome to nothing but bars and shakes.

By Stephanie Category: Refreshing Stories , Weight

Things are off to an exciting start. I finally had my consent appointment and started the VLCD program. (Note to anyone interested in the program: Several weeks may occur between your initial appointment and the actual start of the program. A lot needs to be done in between and since the program is so popular, it may take a while for you to get in and meet with your doctor.)

Day one was hard. Let me rephrase – day one was really hard. I was hungry pretty much all day long. And believe it or not I learned quite a bit about the program in that one day.

As a quick reminder, my food “prescription” includes five shakes and two bars every day. I thought I would be super-clever and eat a shake for breakfast, double shake and bar for lunch, and double shake and bar for dinner. That way I wouldn’t have to worry about working shakes into the middle of the day at work.

Big mistake. I got so hungry in between meals that I was literally sick to my stomach. And to make it worse, I wasn’t tolerating the double shake well. By the time I choked down the last drink I was literally sick to my stomach. The shakes taste good – they really do. But I guess I wasn’t ready to take down two at once.

Still excited, but a little defeated, I headed to bed on day one. I made some mental notes about what I would do differently during day two. And when I woke up and got on the scale at home. I saw that I had lost…get ready for this…4.5 pounds!

Now I am fully aware that almost all of that was water weight. But after the day I had, I was willing to take any positive encouragement I could get! I quickly decided that I would not make getting on the scale at home between classes a habit. I know from past experience that the scale can be a fickle friend and there is nothing worse than feeling like you’ve made big progress only to see that you’ve lost nothing or maybe even gained weight for some mysterious and inexplicable reason.

So today I’m on day five and things are MUCH better. I instituted a schedule: a shake or bar every two hours starting at 8:00am. It’s been great. As crazy as it sounds, I’m really not hungry.

That doesn’t mean I don’t want to eat. Every time my husband cooks dinner for himself and the kids, or I smell the takeout pizza in the next cubicle at work, I think about how much I’d like to eat. I figure it will take some significant time and effort for me to see food and not immediately fantasize about stuffing my face. I have a lot of work to do and it will begin next week when I go to my first class.

Another aspect of the program is weekly group classroom sessions. The sessions are designed to give you the tools necessary for long-term success and weight maintenance. They also keep you accountable with the weekly weigh-in. So for now, I’m doing well and feeling optimistic.

While I’m not going to divulge my starting weight just yet (maybe I’ll get braver as this goes on), I will keep everyone posted after each weekly weigh-in with my current pounds lost. I’m aiming for a 3-4 pound per week weight loss while on the program over the next twelve weeks.

Wish me luck and stay tuned!

If you’re thinking about making a healthy change to improve your weight, getting started with the Dean Comprehensive Weight Management Program is easy. You begin by attending a free no-pressure-whatsoever information session. Here’s the schedule of times and locations. Y0u can also call (608) 824-4457 or (800) 808-1190 for more information, or check out the Comprehensive Weight Management section of the Deancare.com website.

Stephanie’s blog, part 1: Thrilled to win, anxious to get started and just a little freaked out.

By Stephanie Category: Refreshing Stories , Weight

I can’t begin to tell you how excited I was to win the Dean Refresh You Makeover Contest!

Although that excitement is still strong, it is now being tempered with a little bit of anxiety. A lot of people helped me get here and I don’t want to let them, or myself, down. I made a pretty serious commitment to my health and I want to make the most of this opportunity! So I’m giving it my all and will let the Dean Comprehensive Weight Management staff be my guide. Wish me luck!

Aaron and I had our first meeting with the Dean Refresh You staff over lunch (yes…there were cookies) and we got to know the fine people who made this whole contest possible. I also met with JoDeen, the Program Manager of the Comprehensive Weight Management program. She is an energetic, no-nonsense woman who is genuinely interested in my health. She took me through my options.

I’m not interested in surgery, so we talked about the Very Low Calorie Diet (VLCD), the LEARN program, and nutritional counseling. After extensive discussion with JoDeen, and some research on my own, I decided to explore VLCD.

Now bear with me, because this is going to sound a little bit crazy. VLCD means that I won’t eat any food for the next twelve weeks – just shakes and bars specially formulated for those trying to lose weight. I will be consuming around 700 calories a day.

Like I said, it sounds crazy. What about finding something you can live with for the rest of your life? How can someone really give up food for three months? How do you explain to those around you that you just aren’t eating anything at all? Yeah, I asked those questions, too.

But after talking to the professionals at Dean and doing some reading online, I came to this conclusion. The next three months will be like hitting the reset button. Not only will VLCD give me a jumpstart on my weight loss, it will also give me an opportunity to redefine my relationship with food. Basically, when the program is over, I will have to learn how to eat again. But this time, I can pick up healthy habits in place of my current ones.

Next came my first medical appointment with Steve. He walked me through the programs in even more detail. Then I was weighed and measured (awesome) and sent upstairs to have labs done. During VLCD, each patient is monitored closely and before you can even start, you need to have everything from cholesterol to blood counts checked. Steve also sent me home with samples of the shakes and bars so I could try them and figure out which ones I liked. So far, the peanut butter and chocolate graham cracker flavors are my faves!

Now I just have to wait. When the test results are in, I will get a phone call to schedule my first official appointment. Then I’ll go in, meet some other doctor-type folks, pick up my shakes and bars and get started. From there, I will go in once a week to get weighed and measured (again…awesome), and have a group meeting with the doctors and other patients on the program.

I am excited, nervous, and everything in between. I can’t promise I’ll be a supermodel by Christmas, but I can promise to share this whole experience with you. The good, the bad, and the ugly.

JoDeen meets with Stephanie to go over all the options. Let's get this party started!

If you’re thinking about making a healthy change to improve your weight, getting started with the Dean Comprehensive Weight Management Program is easy. You begin by attending a free no-pressure-whatsoever information session. Here’s the schedule of times and locations. Y0u can also call (608) 824-4457 or (800) 808-1190 for more information, or check out the Comprehensive Weight Management section of the Deancare.com website.