Last chance work-out: a warning and a recommendation

I told you I am doing the Jenny Craig Diet. Every Monday I go to Jenny's right after my workout with Victor. So, every Monday I hear, "Come on Elaine, "last chance workout! Come on, let's go!"

Here's the warning. If you ever hear those words, hope that it's being said to someone else. Like Orlando, the other trainer said, "Wow! You can give her anything (exercise) and she won't complain. You just have to say "last chance workout".
It's true. What can I say?

This past Monday I needed to lose 2.6 pounds to be at my halfway mark as I had been told that once I reached that goal I would be able to eat my own food. Now, JC food is quite tasty, but nothing compares to fresh, home cooked food. And, I am tired of the little boxes of food. Anything gets old after awhile.
VS

So, I came into the gym and told Victor, after I finished thirty minutes on the elliptical, "I need to lose .6 pounds in this workout. I've lost two pounds this week, but .6 more pounds will put me at my halfway point with Jenny." Victor responded positively, asked me if I had a jacket I could wear and we got started.

One hour later I left the gym so tired that I could hardly lift my legs, but with just enough energy left to stumble into Jenny's and pour myself onto the scale. I had lost 3 pounds! High Fives!!! I lost one entire pound in that workout, but if you could see what he put me through you wouldn't be surprised. Everyone in the gym was asking why Victor was trying to kill me and, after finding out, encouraged me. "Go, Elaine!" "Go, superwoman!" On the last exercise when I could barely move, Victor got me going by repeating, "Remember the boxes, Elaine! You can do it!" That did it, I mustered my last bit of strength and finished up.

That night I even was able to go to kickboxing as I usually do. The great part was that even after I was rehyrated the next day I not only kept that pound off, but lost another one. I thought briefly about asking Victor to keep it that hard every Monday, but I came to my senses pretty quickly.

Now, here's the recommendation. Ask. That's all. Just ask. For example, I might have asked, "Exactly what do you mean when you say I can eat my own food?" Then I would have known that all that meant was that I could choose two meals the next week of my own food. The rest is still all Jenny. I was disappointed, but realized as I thought about it later that JC doesn't want people to lose all that weight and then put it back on in three weeks by going back to the same old habits. If I don't gain this week, I get to choose two more meals, and so on.

I'm lucky because I've done Weight Watchers for so many years that I know what to do at this point. I needed the structure of JC to get my weight loss kick started, but I've been keeping a food journal online at Weightwatchers.com for weeks to ease back into real food. Still, I can be patient. It won't be much longer. I have less than 20 pounds to lose. And I'm so excited. This week I'm getting rid of all the size 12's, 14's and 16's in my closet. That is a good feeling. I'll be keeping a food journal and going to a personal trainer for the rest of my life, and it's worth it to feel this good.

And, I'm making progress: Twenty-nine pounds down. Nineteen pounds to go!

Thought for the day:
"Don't let the fear of the time it will take to accomplish something stand in the way of your doing it. The time will pass anyway; we might just as well put that passing time to the best possible use." ~Earl Nightingale

And, one more:
"Patience and perseverance have a magical effect before which difficulties disappear and obstacles vanish.”

John Quincy Adams