Ahhh, pregnancy. I do love it. Yes, there are grievances.. and sure, I don't know if I spelled that right.. but there is such a freedom in being pregnant. The complete absence of any judgment for the sheer volume of food consumed. It's.. too easy.
My first trimester excuse was that I was feeling queasy and had to eat all the time to ward off feeling sick. So now I need to think of a new excuse for second trimester. I'm well into my second trimester, so this excuse is long overdue, mind you. I'm starting my 20th week now, so I've had a few months to enjoy the relentless eating that is so freely forgiven during pregnancy.
I went to the doc on Tuesday, and I weighed 164.2. Yeah, I decided that weight is just a number and I know I've never shared it before, but really only because I didn't think it was overly relevant. Now I'm sharing it because I really got tired of sharing the percentage lost in any given week, and I'd just as soon break it down into pounds lost and not have to do any more math than that. Not that I'm about to start weekly updates of what I have gained or anything.. but -ugh, whatever, I don't know how to wrap up that thought and it couldn't be boring me more. I started out this pregnancy at 153 lbs. So I've gained 11.2 in 20 weeks. I believe that's about half what I gained at this point with Jett. But it's definitely starting to come to the forefront that this whole process of losing the baby weight is going to be far easier if I'm conscientious starting now.
So I'm calling out for free advice. Please feel free to leave me tips, even anonymously if you prefer, because I need all the encouragement and motivation I can get.
Here are my struggles:
1. Pop/coffee. I know I should be reducing caffeine, but I really struggle to give up my pop and coffee when I'm pregnant. It's awful. Help me out.
2. I don't exercise. It's not that I don't have the energy or even the time. I can come up with loads of both if I'm really being honest. I think what I need more than anything is a kick in the pants.
3. Eating is delightful. Hah. I eat large meals, I eat numerous meals, and I eat lots of stuff in between that is generally just garbage. My comfort foods are things like pasta, dumplings, things that turn to glue and serve no purpose other than to make me miserable an hour later. I eat until I have heartburn, I eat when I'm not hungry, I eat even when I have no appetite or desire to eat. It's tomfoolishness. Cure me.
4. It's hard to have incentive when my weight is on the rise. I'm not trying to lose weight at all. I just want to be healthier now so that it's easy to be healthy after baby comes. I'd rather have my diet habits be a continuation of how I have been eating (assuming that I've been eating healthy foods) than to try to 'resume' a way of eating after giving it up for nine months. I had to do that with Jett, and it was tough.
So lay it on me, cats. Here's your chance to offer free advice. Or a lecture. Or a motivational powerpoint presentation. I'm counting on YOU to give me the kick in the pants I need!
[Sanctimony need not apply.]
Ready, go!
Thursday, October 14, 2010
Tuesday, August 10, 2010
So sorry! But I do have news.
It has been way too long since I last posted. You're probably thinking I've either been too busy or I've been too ashamed to post anything since I made the blog so boring. Confession: I've been TOO TIRED. I am 10 weeks pregnant, due March 9th. Kind of hard to maintain a blog on weight loss when you're looking at 9 months of bloat ahead of you! So hopefully now you can understand a little better why I changed things up in my last post and then disappeared for so long. I wanted to make sure things were going okay for a while before announcing it to the world. I just had an appointment last week, and things are looking good so far! The appointment I'm anxious for is on September 14th.. which is when we find out if it's a singlet or twinkies. Mom is convinced I'm having twins. I... just want to know one way or another.
So. I've been thinking some more about what to do with this blog. I can tell you this much- it is next to impossible for me to eat healthy when pregnant! I eat pretty much constantly or I feel green. I'm hoping that improves in a few weeks here, but lately it's actually been getting worse, not better. Do you know how hard it is to choke down whole wheat bread and bean burgers and salads when it's all you can do to get a chocolate malt down? Okay, I'm exaggerating. I'm not THAT sick. But healthy food is totally repulsive. Sugar and grease and fat, however, have never looked better. I'm on a steady diet of chicken nachos and peanut butter M&Ms. Pretty different from some of my last posts! So I don't know what to do. Based on how hard it has been to make regular updates the last while, I think I'll forego those for a while and maybe just make the occasional update. I will resume regular updates after the kiddo arrives.
So until next time. I don't know when I'll feel compelled to post again, but I also have my other blog that I'll probably be posting more regularly on. See you when I see you.
So. I've been thinking some more about what to do with this blog. I can tell you this much- it is next to impossible for me to eat healthy when pregnant! I eat pretty much constantly or I feel green. I'm hoping that improves in a few weeks here, but lately it's actually been getting worse, not better. Do you know how hard it is to choke down whole wheat bread and bean burgers and salads when it's all you can do to get a chocolate malt down? Okay, I'm exaggerating. I'm not THAT sick. But healthy food is totally repulsive. Sugar and grease and fat, however, have never looked better. I'm on a steady diet of chicken nachos and peanut butter M&Ms. Pretty different from some of my last posts! So I don't know what to do. Based on how hard it has been to make regular updates the last while, I think I'll forego those for a while and maybe just make the occasional update. I will resume regular updates after the kiddo arrives.
So until next time. I don't know when I'll feel compelled to post again, but I also have my other blog that I'll probably be posting more regularly on. See you when I see you.
Saturday, July 17, 2010
Week 11. 12. 13.
I'm not sure what I was thinking in my last post when I said I would share my two-week progress. It's been three weeks. You can understand why my time management is poor at best.
I'll tell you right up front that this post is NOT going to be about numbers!
Just came off a ten day vacation, so my progress has been.. what's the opposite of progress.. sighh. But I ain't sorry! I refuse to eat flaxseed and fiber and weeds when I'm trying to enjoy myself! Or maybe it's not even that so much as they don't serve such things at fast food places. No, it's the first thing. Anyway, ten days is a long time to go careening off one's game plan.
But I had some time to reflect. Here's what I decided. This blog is so much about the progress I have made. I post a percentage each week, and then we know if I have accomplished what I set out to do or if I'm a big fat failure. But I realized something while sipping on my carbonated pineapple beverage, sitting in 95 degree heat and reading my book by the pool.. and that is that all I really care about is FEELING good. Not looking good. Unfortunately, there really isn't a "biggest loser" method for measuring how good a person feels. I guess what I'm proposing is dropping the Percentage Lost aspect of this blog and just posting about what motivates me during the week and makes me feel better, more healthy.
This blog just got 72% more boring. Now I really AM a loser, baby.
Here's the other part. I no longer think my goal was realistic. I often find that when I'm only thinking about what the scale says, I tend to go a bit overboard with my dieting methods. Everyone who knows me knows that I always have a thing.. one week it's high fiber, the next it's low sugar, the week after that it's high unsaturated fat, etc. And that's probably fine most of the time, but for me it results in that feeling that I am FAILING if I'm not committing to the current borderline obsessive goal. Someone told me once to try to abide by the 80/20 rule. Eat well 80% of the time. That's it. Don't worry about the rest. That is so not me! I figure what's the point of trying to do something only 80% of the time? Or in other words, why shoot for a low B? And I guess the answer (for me) is that if I can't get an A, I lose interest and hope altogether.
I realize that by declaring my new 80/20 rule that I'm actually just reinforcing my bad habit of always having a "thing".. believe me, I get it.
Oh, back to my other point. I don't think my 22.3% is realistic anymore. I'm at my pre-pregnancy weight, and while I don't think that I was at my goal weight then either, I do realize that I'm close enough now that I should be looking more for a way to make sustainable changes, rather than thinking so much about what I can do to make a change for this week.
Make sense?
So I guess that's it for this week. Next week: Flaxseed, Fiber and Weeds. Can't wait.
I'll tell you right up front that this post is NOT going to be about numbers!
Just came off a ten day vacation, so my progress has been.. what's the opposite of progress.. sighh. But I ain't sorry! I refuse to eat flaxseed and fiber and weeds when I'm trying to enjoy myself! Or maybe it's not even that so much as they don't serve such things at fast food places. No, it's the first thing. Anyway, ten days is a long time to go careening off one's game plan.
But I had some time to reflect. Here's what I decided. This blog is so much about the progress I have made. I post a percentage each week, and then we know if I have accomplished what I set out to do or if I'm a big fat failure. But I realized something while sipping on my carbonated pineapple beverage, sitting in 95 degree heat and reading my book by the pool.. and that is that all I really care about is FEELING good. Not looking good. Unfortunately, there really isn't a "biggest loser" method for measuring how good a person feels. I guess what I'm proposing is dropping the Percentage Lost aspect of this blog and just posting about what motivates me during the week and makes me feel better, more healthy.
This blog just got 72% more boring. Now I really AM a loser, baby.
Here's the other part. I no longer think my goal was realistic. I often find that when I'm only thinking about what the scale says, I tend to go a bit overboard with my dieting methods. Everyone who knows me knows that I always have a thing.. one week it's high fiber, the next it's low sugar, the week after that it's high unsaturated fat, etc. And that's probably fine most of the time, but for me it results in that feeling that I am FAILING if I'm not committing to the current borderline obsessive goal. Someone told me once to try to abide by the 80/20 rule. Eat well 80% of the time. That's it. Don't worry about the rest. That is so not me! I figure what's the point of trying to do something only 80% of the time? Or in other words, why shoot for a low B? And I guess the answer (for me) is that if I can't get an A, I lose interest and hope altogether.
I realize that by declaring my new 80/20 rule that I'm actually just reinforcing my bad habit of always having a "thing".. believe me, I get it.
Oh, back to my other point. I don't think my 22.3% is realistic anymore. I'm at my pre-pregnancy weight, and while I don't think that I was at my goal weight then either, I do realize that I'm close enough now that I should be looking more for a way to make sustainable changes, rather than thinking so much about what I can do to make a change for this week.
Make sense?
So I guess that's it for this week. Next week: Flaxseed, Fiber and Weeds. Can't wait.
Monday, June 28, 2010
Week 10.
This one is going to be SHORT. Swear.
I'm becoming more aware all the time that there are people who are following my progress. Or my attempts at progress. It is SO NICE to know that there are people out there that want me to be successful at this! And I don't want to let you down. Progress has been miserably slow the past month, and I can't imagine that that's real fun to tune in to and read, so I am really going to try harder. Really.
Today I went swimming on my lunch break. It. felt. awesome. It was the boost I needed.. the kick-in-the-pants jump-start to my momentum.
Confession: I did have a Mountain Dew today. But I figured it was a small price to pay in order to keep my job, as they seem to frown upon naps there.
The hope is that after I get a wonderful night's sleep tonight, tomorrow I'll have even more energy and sleepiness won't be such a battle. I hope tomorrow is nice.. I'm planning to walk on my lunch break.
I'm sorry this post is late and contains so little info. That might be the norm for a while. This next weekend we're going to a family reunion in Wisconsin, and the Wednesday after we head down south for a ten day vacation! I will post if/when I can. If I can't, I'll just post my two-week post-vacation results.
Thanks again for tuning in, I really appreciate the support. :)
I'm becoming more aware all the time that there are people who are following my progress. Or my attempts at progress. It is SO NICE to know that there are people out there that want me to be successful at this! And I don't want to let you down. Progress has been miserably slow the past month, and I can't imagine that that's real fun to tune in to and read, so I am really going to try harder. Really.
Today I went swimming on my lunch break. It. felt. awesome. It was the boost I needed.. the kick-in-the-pants jump-start to my momentum.
Confession: I did have a Mountain Dew today. But I figured it was a small price to pay in order to keep my job, as they seem to frown upon naps there.
The hope is that after I get a wonderful night's sleep tonight, tomorrow I'll have even more energy and sleepiness won't be such a battle. I hope tomorrow is nice.. I'm planning to walk on my lunch break.
I'm sorry this post is late and contains so little info. That might be the norm for a while. This next weekend we're going to a family reunion in Wisconsin, and the Wednesday after we head down south for a ten day vacation! I will post if/when I can. If I can't, I'll just post my two-week post-vacation results.
Thanks again for tuning in, I really appreciate the support. :)
Sunday, June 20, 2010
Week Eight. Week Nine. Can these two not count?
Well. So. How are you, I am fine.
I so don't want to write this blog.
It would be different if I had some BIG NEWS to report! Instead I'm stuck here on this plateau, which isn't so much a plateau as it is me just taking a two-week long breather on the side of a mountain. See, and that's just it.. I feel like I could have had progress to report but instead I have to sit here and tell you that the scale didn't go down from lack of effort. In a lot of ways, it's a bummer to be held accountable (in the form of a blog) for my weight goals! But it's also exactly what I need.
So what went wrong..? Well, I hardly even count this last week. I put in almost 80 hours, and it was all I could do to make it through the day. It wasn't so bad at first, but by Saturday I was eating whatever I could get my hands on. But the problem lies in that second sentence. I've had busy weeks before (granted, never this busy) but I have been able to successfully maintain a healthy diet. For me, a huge part of it is in the preparation the night before. I have to prepare my meals, or at least decide in advance what I will buy for lunch. But leaving the house at 6:30 and coming home at 10 didn't leave me much time or desire for grocery shopping, cooking, planning, or anything really, unless it involved my face mushed into a cozy pillow.
I'm looking at another long week. I'm sure it won't be as rough as last week since the conversion happens tomorrow afternoon and the bulk of the work I had to do was in preparation for the conversion. However, I am more determined than ever to find ways over the little speedbumps that I keep stalling out on. I bought hearts of romaine, spinach, bell peppers, strawberries and grapes. I am going to make salads in advance and put them in individual containers. Then in the morning I will be able to just grab one and go. And if you have never tried a salad consisting of hearts of romaine, spinach, chicken or tuna, bell peppers, cucumbers, strawberries, green grapes, almonds, and roasted garlic balsamic vinaigrette, you must try one. You will see why I want one almost every day. Ooh, as long as we're on the subject, I also heartily recommend homemade breakfast sandwiches. I make an egg english muffin almost every morning, and it's so fast and easy! Just get a ceramic bowl with a very small base (or large coffee mug) and crack an organic egg into it and stir it a bit with a fork. Cover it with a paper towl and put it in the microwave for 20-30 seconds. Flip it over and put it back in for another 20-30 seconds. You will have a perfectly delicious fried egg that is the exact size of your english muffin. I like the wheat english muffins (I think they say Light or something?). They are soft and have amazing flavor. I toast one, put my egg on it, and then use Hellman's mayo made with olive oil. Okay, so I'm not a purist. I'll use any way possible to get some of the good fats in. One egg muffin is around 220 calories, but it depends on how much mayo you use. Pair it up with an apple or pear or grapes and you've got a quick and filling breakfast. (If you want to make it with cheese, sprinkle a little cheddar into your egg before you cook it. It just takes a little longer in the microwave. It's also a few more calories, of course.)
Sorry, not sure when this turned into a cooking blog.
Remember two weeks ago when I pumped my fist in the air and declared that I WOULD be working out and posting about it to boot? Let's just say that Newton wasn't kidding around when he was talking about objects at rest remaining at rest. I am the dictionary definition of inertia, and I have hit a total mental roadblock on finding momentum.
Oh, but it's so easy, right? Now it's your turn to shake your fist in the air at me, hopefully in encouragement, and shout at your computer screen, "Just START! You'll see how easy it is to keep going!".. but believe me, I'm saying it right along with you. I just cannot seem to find the time. I know, I know, if you want to get something done, you'll find a way. If you don't, you'll find an excuse. So let me just say that this week, I'm going to figure out what those excuses are, legitimate or not, and find someway around them. For example, one of the things that hinders me from working out in the evening is that I hate to go in the basement when Jett is sleeping upstairs for fear that I'll be on the treadmill and I won't hear him wake up and start crying. It's a sub-conscious thing, for the most part. But my solution is that I'm going to buy another baby monitor. Our first one broke, and I haven't taken the time to replace it until now. Once I have a baby monitor, I won't have that as a roadblock anymore. Another excuse: I drive two hours a day. I've been over this already. I don't think this one is so much an excuse as it is just a mental anguish of mine.. oh to have a whole two hours more in every single day! I can hardly imagine it! Surely then I'd have time to exercise.. and do all the other eleventy billion things that I can't get done...... right? If I'm totally honest with myself, I can admit that the two hours I spend driving are some of the best hours of my day. It's the time I unwind, relax, think, daydream, speculate, resolve, and curse out other drivers. Although I'm getting better about that last part. I'm just kidding... I'm getting worse. NOT my point. I get more done during those two hours than I realize. The time that I spend unwinding in my car after work is time that I don't have to spend unwinding at home. And the nice thing about the car ride is that it's a pre-determined length of time and then I'm done, as opposed to unwinding at home where time always gets away from me and suddenly it's time to go to bed and I haven't exercised yet. So.. solutions: well, I have a couple of grand ideas that I'm hoping to implement, and soon. First of all, assuming that I get out of work at a decent time this week, I am going to commit to staying off the computer until I have exercised for the evening. Because let's face it, I can stay entertained on the computer for hours. If I ever sit down on my computer first, I should know by know that I won't end up exercising. So that's going to be my first commitment. Secondly, I'm going to start walking on my lunch breaks. I can eat while working, so now I will get at least a half hour of walking in per day. This is contingent on the weather, of course. But this is something simple that I can implement. And hey, while we're at it, let me commit to this: if I have to cancel my walk due to inclement weather, I'll climb up and down the stairs for a bit. How's that? Finally, and this is my favorite one of all, there is a pool on campus just a few minutes from where I work, and it's open to the public. My co-worker Lisa and I are going to attempt to go swimming on an extended lunch hour at least twice a week. I'm so excited! I won't be able to start this until next week, which is a huge bummer, but I'll do my walking in the meantime.
So there we have it.. tackled a few issues, got a little determination back. Let's see if we can get some momentum this week. Shooting for big numbers now!
I so don't want to write this blog.
It would be different if I had some BIG NEWS to report! Instead I'm stuck here on this plateau, which isn't so much a plateau as it is me just taking a two-week long breather on the side of a mountain. See, and that's just it.. I feel like I could have had progress to report but instead I have to sit here and tell you that the scale didn't go down from lack of effort. In a lot of ways, it's a bummer to be held accountable (in the form of a blog) for my weight goals! But it's also exactly what I need.
So what went wrong..? Well, I hardly even count this last week. I put in almost 80 hours, and it was all I could do to make it through the day. It wasn't so bad at first, but by Saturday I was eating whatever I could get my hands on. But the problem lies in that second sentence. I've had busy weeks before (granted, never this busy) but I have been able to successfully maintain a healthy diet. For me, a huge part of it is in the preparation the night before. I have to prepare my meals, or at least decide in advance what I will buy for lunch. But leaving the house at 6:30 and coming home at 10 didn't leave me much time or desire for grocery shopping, cooking, planning, or anything really, unless it involved my face mushed into a cozy pillow.
I'm looking at another long week. I'm sure it won't be as rough as last week since the conversion happens tomorrow afternoon and the bulk of the work I had to do was in preparation for the conversion. However, I am more determined than ever to find ways over the little speedbumps that I keep stalling out on. I bought hearts of romaine, spinach, bell peppers, strawberries and grapes. I am going to make salads in advance and put them in individual containers. Then in the morning I will be able to just grab one and go. And if you have never tried a salad consisting of hearts of romaine, spinach, chicken or tuna, bell peppers, cucumbers, strawberries, green grapes, almonds, and roasted garlic balsamic vinaigrette, you must try one. You will see why I want one almost every day. Ooh, as long as we're on the subject, I also heartily recommend homemade breakfast sandwiches. I make an egg english muffin almost every morning, and it's so fast and easy! Just get a ceramic bowl with a very small base (or large coffee mug) and crack an organic egg into it and stir it a bit with a fork. Cover it with a paper towl and put it in the microwave for 20-30 seconds. Flip it over and put it back in for another 20-30 seconds. You will have a perfectly delicious fried egg that is the exact size of your english muffin. I like the wheat english muffins (I think they say Light or something?). They are soft and have amazing flavor. I toast one, put my egg on it, and then use Hellman's mayo made with olive oil. Okay, so I'm not a purist. I'll use any way possible to get some of the good fats in. One egg muffin is around 220 calories, but it depends on how much mayo you use. Pair it up with an apple or pear or grapes and you've got a quick and filling breakfast. (If you want to make it with cheese, sprinkle a little cheddar into your egg before you cook it. It just takes a little longer in the microwave. It's also a few more calories, of course.)
Sorry, not sure when this turned into a cooking blog.
Remember two weeks ago when I pumped my fist in the air and declared that I WOULD be working out and posting about it to boot? Let's just say that Newton wasn't kidding around when he was talking about objects at rest remaining at rest. I am the dictionary definition of inertia, and I have hit a total mental roadblock on finding momentum.
Oh, but it's so easy, right? Now it's your turn to shake your fist in the air at me, hopefully in encouragement, and shout at your computer screen, "Just START! You'll see how easy it is to keep going!".. but believe me, I'm saying it right along with you. I just cannot seem to find the time. I know, I know, if you want to get something done, you'll find a way. If you don't, you'll find an excuse. So let me just say that this week, I'm going to figure out what those excuses are, legitimate or not, and find someway around them. For example, one of the things that hinders me from working out in the evening is that I hate to go in the basement when Jett is sleeping upstairs for fear that I'll be on the treadmill and I won't hear him wake up and start crying. It's a sub-conscious thing, for the most part. But my solution is that I'm going to buy another baby monitor. Our first one broke, and I haven't taken the time to replace it until now. Once I have a baby monitor, I won't have that as a roadblock anymore. Another excuse: I drive two hours a day. I've been over this already. I don't think this one is so much an excuse as it is just a mental anguish of mine.. oh to have a whole two hours more in every single day! I can hardly imagine it! Surely then I'd have time to exercise.. and do all the other eleventy billion things that I can't get done...... right? If I'm totally honest with myself, I can admit that the two hours I spend driving are some of the best hours of my day. It's the time I unwind, relax, think, daydream, speculate, resolve, and curse out other drivers. Although I'm getting better about that last part. I'm just kidding... I'm getting worse. NOT my point. I get more done during those two hours than I realize. The time that I spend unwinding in my car after work is time that I don't have to spend unwinding at home. And the nice thing about the car ride is that it's a pre-determined length of time and then I'm done, as opposed to unwinding at home where time always gets away from me and suddenly it's time to go to bed and I haven't exercised yet. So.. solutions: well, I have a couple of grand ideas that I'm hoping to implement, and soon. First of all, assuming that I get out of work at a decent time this week, I am going to commit to staying off the computer until I have exercised for the evening. Because let's face it, I can stay entertained on the computer for hours. If I ever sit down on my computer first, I should know by know that I won't end up exercising. So that's going to be my first commitment. Secondly, I'm going to start walking on my lunch breaks. I can eat while working, so now I will get at least a half hour of walking in per day. This is contingent on the weather, of course. But this is something simple that I can implement. And hey, while we're at it, let me commit to this: if I have to cancel my walk due to inclement weather, I'll climb up and down the stairs for a bit. How's that? Finally, and this is my favorite one of all, there is a pool on campus just a few minutes from where I work, and it's open to the public. My co-worker Lisa and I are going to attempt to go swimming on an extended lunch hour at least twice a week. I'm so excited! I won't be able to start this until next week, which is a huge bummer, but I'll do my walking in the meantime.
So there we have it.. tackled a few issues, got a little determination back. Let's see if we can get some momentum this week. Shooting for big numbers now!
Wednesday, June 16, 2010
Update coming soon..
I haven't abandoned this project altogether, I'm just really busy this week! I'll post this weekend with my two week progress. Not to spoil the surprise, but it's nothing to write home about. or post in a blog about. sighh.
See you soon!
See you soon!
Saturday, June 5, 2010
Week seven.
Well, kids. Week seven is over. This week I lost 2.87%! Such a relief. I can't say that I even had the best week, but I tried not to let little failures turn into big ones. I'm not sure why that's such a difficult mindset for me to attain.
One thing I'm disappointed about is the fact that I continue to find it so difficult to find time to exercise. Earlier this week I had just finished blogging about how I was going to do my first run, but then Jett woke up. It took an hour to get him back down, and then the night was shot. It makes it especially difficult when Jason is working such long hours, because the only time I can start exercising is after Jett is fast asleep.
Another reason it's difficult is because I drive two hours a day. I have to leave the house by 7 a.m. and I don't get home until 5:30 at the earliest. sighh.. excuses, excuses. This week, I'm going to step out on a limb and guarantee that I will exercise at least ONE DAY. If I can make it work one day, then maybe I'll get some momentum and I won't feel so discouraged.
I've been at this for seven weeks now and lost 8.07%. That means I only have about 12 weeks to go at this pace. That's doable.. right? New mini-goal: in four weeks we go on vacation, so by then I would like to have lost 15% total. Game on. I WILL blog later in the week when I exercise. No more excuses. Until then!
Oh, one last thing. My best friend told me about her mom's success using a diet that focuses on changing eating habits for life. I guess I should call it a lifestyle change, not a diet. She avoids processed foods and eats whole, fresh foods. I can't remember what the exact amount lost is, but it was somewhere in the 30-40 lb range. So if you happen to read this - nice work, Karen N.! It's motivating to all of us, but particularly to those of us who are trying to make the same kind of lifestyle change. I would imagine that you feel as great as you look. Thanks for the reminder that this is very doable.
One thing I'm disappointed about is the fact that I continue to find it so difficult to find time to exercise. Earlier this week I had just finished blogging about how I was going to do my first run, but then Jett woke up. It took an hour to get him back down, and then the night was shot. It makes it especially difficult when Jason is working such long hours, because the only time I can start exercising is after Jett is fast asleep.
Another reason it's difficult is because I drive two hours a day. I have to leave the house by 7 a.m. and I don't get home until 5:30 at the earliest. sighh.. excuses, excuses. This week, I'm going to step out on a limb and guarantee that I will exercise at least ONE DAY. If I can make it work one day, then maybe I'll get some momentum and I won't feel so discouraged.
I've been at this for seven weeks now and lost 8.07%. That means I only have about 12 weeks to go at this pace. That's doable.. right? New mini-goal: in four weeks we go on vacation, so by then I would like to have lost 15% total. Game on. I WILL blog later in the week when I exercise. No more excuses. Until then!
Oh, one last thing. My best friend told me about her mom's success using a diet that focuses on changing eating habits for life. I guess I should call it a lifestyle change, not a diet. She avoids processed foods and eats whole, fresh foods. I can't remember what the exact amount lost is, but it was somewhere in the 30-40 lb range. So if you happen to read this - nice work, Karen N.! It's motivating to all of us, but particularly to those of us who are trying to make the same kind of lifestyle change. I would imagine that you feel as great as you look. Thanks for the reminder that this is very doable.
Tuesday, June 1, 2010
Fresh start..
Today went well! A couple of cool things happened today:
1. Apparently there is a Subway right up the road from where I work. Now I'm normally not a big fan of Subway, but they are quickly becoming one of the only places I can eat out for lunch. (Although there's an Extreme Pita even closer.) Anyway, this Subway is so new that it doesn't even stink up the whole block yet, so it's not half bad. I had the new chicken salad sandwich today, it was pretty good.
2. Someone planted a seed in my head that I need to run a marathon. I have no idea how I'll ever find the time to train for a marathon or even a half-marathon, but I like this plan. I'm going to do the 9 week program for n00bs, after which I should [allegedly] be able to run a 5k. After that, I'm going to go up 10% a week and hopefully I'll be in good enough shape by September to attempt the half in DL. My knees have taken a beating in the past, not so much from running but from wearing high heels, so I am committed to starting out slow this time. My first run begins in t-4 minutes or as soon as Jett is sound asleep, whichever is later. I haven't heard much in the past ten minutes though..
3. I successfully passed up sugar, dairy, and flour today. I don't feel better yet.. in fact, if anything, my body is really not impressed by this new, and less fun, change. Hopefully tomorrow is a little better.
4. I remembered to take my vitamins. hahh. Alright, even I'm bored with this blog. Off to attempt my first run! Don't care how I do as long as I don't end up with rugburn on my forehead. Wish me luck.
1. Apparently there is a Subway right up the road from where I work. Now I'm normally not a big fan of Subway, but they are quickly becoming one of the only places I can eat out for lunch. (Although there's an Extreme Pita even closer.) Anyway, this Subway is so new that it doesn't even stink up the whole block yet, so it's not half bad. I had the new chicken salad sandwich today, it was pretty good.
2. Someone planted a seed in my head that I need to run a marathon. I have no idea how I'll ever find the time to train for a marathon or even a half-marathon, but I like this plan. I'm going to do the 9 week program for n00bs, after which I should [allegedly] be able to run a 5k. After that, I'm going to go up 10% a week and hopefully I'll be in good enough shape by September to attempt the half in DL. My knees have taken a beating in the past, not so much from running but from wearing high heels, so I am committed to starting out slow this time. My first run begins in t-4 minutes or as soon as Jett is sound asleep, whichever is later. I haven't heard much in the past ten minutes though..
3. I successfully passed up sugar, dairy, and flour today. I don't feel better yet.. in fact, if anything, my body is really not impressed by this new, and less fun, change. Hopefully tomorrow is a little better.
4. I remembered to take my vitamins. hahh. Alright, even I'm bored with this blog. Off to attempt my first run! Don't care how I do as long as I don't end up with rugburn on my forehead. Wish me luck.
Monday, May 31, 2010
Week six.
Well, that time has come.. the time when I can no longer justifiably postpone updating this stupid blog. sighh. Let's talk about week six. But first let's talk a little about the end of week five.
During week five, I was doing quite well away for work. I found it surprisingly easy to eat well, and although I did have my moments (mostly involving the unavoidable need for caffeine), I never felt like I was out of control.
Here's some insight into how my mind works. In a nutshell, I am all or nothing. I have tried to mediate this some, I even bought a book called Small Change to see if I could learn how to be a more moderate person, but again and again I have found that I have to do things 100% or not at all. This is in no way meant to be some kind of bragging disguised as a woeful admittance, because about 98% of the time, I'm at zero percent. How ironic is that? I'm all or nothing, except in my all or nothing percentage. What. I want an iced coffee. And stop analyzing whether or not that situation is actually ironic. The 13 people in the world who know the true definition of ironic and can give good examples and correct the rest of the population when they misuse the term... you go on and git.
So here's my point: if I start to do something 100% and I feel myself slipping in any way, I feel as though I have failed, and I truly don't know the difference between 99% and 1%. For example, if I am on a hardcore diet and I break down one day and have a pop, it's pretty much a given that I'll also have ice cream, a frappuccino, chips and salsa, and a frozen pizza by the time the day is done. And I'll swear to start over the next day.
The problem with that when attempting something like a low-sugar diet lies in the addictive nature of sugar. Toward the end of week five, I had slipped a few times, but I didn't lose my stride because I think I had expected to go all out and I was feeling pretty good about the progress I had made. But more importantly than that was the fact that I didn't feel like I wanted to eat. I didn't have the physical cravings. It was no skin off my back if I passed something up, and I attribute that to the lack of a sugar addiction raging inside.
I think I must have started to feel that I deserved a day off. Or maybe I just felt like I had finally kicked cravings and I could maintain control even by giving in occasionally. I'm not sure exactly how it snowballed, but without getting into too many gory details, I was derailed this week. Big time. Full-on sugar festival. And flour and potatoes and fast food.
Every single day I intended to get back on track, and the frustrating thing to me is this annoying all-or-nothing personality that I don't really know how to overcome. If I couldn't start the day off with breakfast, I didn't even try for lunch or dinner. Before I knew it, I was drinking pop with every meal, coffee at work, fast food for lunch, junk food for supper, etc. And I was right back to feeling completely out of control.
But there's more. I want you all to understand the physical hold that sugar/flour/dairy (or the so-called "white menace") can have on a person.
We already covered the mental component. Cravings dominated my days. I felt as though I had no control over what I chose to eat. It was easy for me to justify eating whatever I wanted.
Physically, this is how I felt this week:
-exhausted. Head-bobbing-at-work, trying-to-keep-my-eyes-open-while-driving, fall-asleep-while-standing-up exhausted. And the scariest thing to me is how familiar this feeling is. I had forgotten how tired I felt before I gave up sugar and dairy. So far today I've had more naps than Jett has. I get nothing done when I feel this way.
-sluggish and weak. Probably related to the sheer exhaustion, but I simply cannot muster the energy to do anything. Even type this blog, for example. But things like washing bottles, throwing clothes in the wash, making the bed, and showering feel like a lot of work. When I do stand up, I see bursts of light and shooting stars and I have to sit back down in a big hurry.
-irritable, mopey, moody. I can feel my tolerance slipping. I'm a total crab at work. I'm crabby from the second I wake up in the morning. The only time I'm not crabby.. is when I'm eating. Sounds like an addiction to me..?!?!
-persistent stomach-aches. I just don't feel good. Most days, hardly good enough to get out of bed.
-congested. I don't have a cold, but my ears are plugged, my throat is thick, my sinuses are congested. I'm confident this is mostly the dairy.
-racing heart. Perhaps it's only attributable to the sugar and caffeine, but for as exhausted as I feel, I often lay in bed and just feel my heart race.
-headaches. Daily, pounding headaches.
-chest pains. It's hard to describe these. They aren't like a radiating chest pain. It's more of an intermittent shooting pain in between my ribs.
-shortness of breath. I feel 8 months pregnant. Climbing the stairs at work is tough. Any kind of exertion makes me see stars (like standing up, as mentioned earlier).
The thing that is so unbelievable to me is that I used to feel like this all the time. And while I was switching to low sugar/no dairy, I didn't notice as each of these symptoms vanished. I didn't even realize how great I felt until I slipped back into my old habits. Now that I'm fully immersed in how I used to feel, I think I will be able to pull out of this thing and start fresh.
One thing that I'm realizing with this little week-by-week experiment is that although there is a focus on the percentage lost each week, for me the real focus is on how I feel. I don't want to go the rest of my life feeling like this. I want to feel as great as I did a few weeks ago. At least now I know how attainable it is. I just need to get my momentum back. Wish me luck.
ps. My weight went up 1.91% this week. Amazing. I was consistently seeing the weight come off, and now in one week I have added almost 2% back on. I won't be taking any more holidays any time soon.
During week five, I was doing quite well away for work. I found it surprisingly easy to eat well, and although I did have my moments (mostly involving the unavoidable need for caffeine), I never felt like I was out of control.
Here's some insight into how my mind works. In a nutshell, I am all or nothing. I have tried to mediate this some, I even bought a book called Small Change to see if I could learn how to be a more moderate person, but again and again I have found that I have to do things 100% or not at all. This is in no way meant to be some kind of bragging disguised as a woeful admittance, because about 98% of the time, I'm at zero percent. How ironic is that? I'm all or nothing, except in my all or nothing percentage. What. I want an iced coffee. And stop analyzing whether or not that situation is actually ironic. The 13 people in the world who know the true definition of ironic and can give good examples and correct the rest of the population when they misuse the term... you go on and git.
So here's my point: if I start to do something 100% and I feel myself slipping in any way, I feel as though I have failed, and I truly don't know the difference between 99% and 1%. For example, if I am on a hardcore diet and I break down one day and have a pop, it's pretty much a given that I'll also have ice cream, a frappuccino, chips and salsa, and a frozen pizza by the time the day is done. And I'll swear to start over the next day.
The problem with that when attempting something like a low-sugar diet lies in the addictive nature of sugar. Toward the end of week five, I had slipped a few times, but I didn't lose my stride because I think I had expected to go all out and I was feeling pretty good about the progress I had made. But more importantly than that was the fact that I didn't feel like I wanted to eat. I didn't have the physical cravings. It was no skin off my back if I passed something up, and I attribute that to the lack of a sugar addiction raging inside.
I think I must have started to feel that I deserved a day off. Or maybe I just felt like I had finally kicked cravings and I could maintain control even by giving in occasionally. I'm not sure exactly how it snowballed, but without getting into too many gory details, I was derailed this week. Big time. Full-on sugar festival. And flour and potatoes and fast food.
Every single day I intended to get back on track, and the frustrating thing to me is this annoying all-or-nothing personality that I don't really know how to overcome. If I couldn't start the day off with breakfast, I didn't even try for lunch or dinner. Before I knew it, I was drinking pop with every meal, coffee at work, fast food for lunch, junk food for supper, etc. And I was right back to feeling completely out of control.
But there's more. I want you all to understand the physical hold that sugar/flour/dairy (or the so-called "white menace") can have on a person.
We already covered the mental component. Cravings dominated my days. I felt as though I had no control over what I chose to eat. It was easy for me to justify eating whatever I wanted.
Physically, this is how I felt this week:
-exhausted. Head-bobbing-at-work, trying-to-keep-my-eyes-open-while-driving, fall-asleep-while-standing-up exhausted. And the scariest thing to me is how familiar this feeling is. I had forgotten how tired I felt before I gave up sugar and dairy. So far today I've had more naps than Jett has. I get nothing done when I feel this way.
-sluggish and weak. Probably related to the sheer exhaustion, but I simply cannot muster the energy to do anything. Even type this blog, for example. But things like washing bottles, throwing clothes in the wash, making the bed, and showering feel like a lot of work. When I do stand up, I see bursts of light and shooting stars and I have to sit back down in a big hurry.
-irritable, mopey, moody. I can feel my tolerance slipping. I'm a total crab at work. I'm crabby from the second I wake up in the morning. The only time I'm not crabby.. is when I'm eating. Sounds like an addiction to me..?!?!
-persistent stomach-aches. I just don't feel good. Most days, hardly good enough to get out of bed.
-congested. I don't have a cold, but my ears are plugged, my throat is thick, my sinuses are congested. I'm confident this is mostly the dairy.
-racing heart. Perhaps it's only attributable to the sugar and caffeine, but for as exhausted as I feel, I often lay in bed and just feel my heart race.
-headaches. Daily, pounding headaches.
-chest pains. It's hard to describe these. They aren't like a radiating chest pain. It's more of an intermittent shooting pain in between my ribs.
-shortness of breath. I feel 8 months pregnant. Climbing the stairs at work is tough. Any kind of exertion makes me see stars (like standing up, as mentioned earlier).
The thing that is so unbelievable to me is that I used to feel like this all the time. And while I was switching to low sugar/no dairy, I didn't notice as each of these symptoms vanished. I didn't even realize how great I felt until I slipped back into my old habits. Now that I'm fully immersed in how I used to feel, I think I will be able to pull out of this thing and start fresh.
One thing that I'm realizing with this little week-by-week experiment is that although there is a focus on the percentage lost each week, for me the real focus is on how I feel. I don't want to go the rest of my life feeling like this. I want to feel as great as I did a few weeks ago. At least now I know how attainable it is. I just need to get my momentum back. Wish me luck.
ps. My weight went up 1.91% this week. Amazing. I was consistently seeing the weight come off, and now in one week I have added almost 2% back on. I won't be taking any more holidays any time soon.
Week five results. Note the lack of an exclamation point.
Well.. I'm feeling pretty non-spectacular! I was gone this past week for business, and surprisingly, it was actually pretty easy to eat well. The hardest part was avoiding caffeine.. (did I mention I was sitting in class eight hours a day?) but we were able to select whatever we wanted from the restaurant within the hotel for lunches, and they had a decent variety of healthy options. Then since dinner was being paid for by the bank, I felt like I could branch out and try different things and not worry about wasting my money. Get this: one of the nights we went to a wonderful little Italian joint called Zelo, and I didn't even have my usual unimaginative fettuccine. I had Alaskan halibut and bell pepper/mango quinoa with red curry-lime broth and Thai basil. Oh, and edamame with sea-salt to start. How grown up am I! I'm glad I tried it, too. It was one of the best meals I've ever tasted. If you can get to downtown Minneapolis, you must try it. It was amazing. Anyway, my point is that I found it remarkably easy to eat well while I was there, and we did a fair amount of walking around in the evening so I wasn't completely sedentary.
However.. I came home on Friday to a house devoid of healthy food. Combine that with having been served my food for a week, and I was not prepared to start cooking and cleaning like some kind of savage. So I made a frozen pizza. sighh.
The good news is that I maintained my weight. I still weigh exactly what I weighed when I left. The bad news is, of course, that I still weigh exactly what I weighed when I left.
This week I downloaded a bunch of new apps for my iPod (which I will review on the Blog page) that I think will help with this little endeavor. Check them out!
Until next week.
However.. I came home on Friday to a house devoid of healthy food. Combine that with having been served my food for a week, and I was not prepared to start cooking and cleaning like some kind of savage. So I made a frozen pizza. sighh.
The good news is that I maintained my weight. I still weigh exactly what I weighed when I left. The bad news is, of course, that I still weigh exactly what I weighed when I left.
This week I downloaded a bunch of new apps for my iPod (which I will review on the Blog page) that I think will help with this little endeavor. Check them out!
Until next week.
Week four results!
I have a lot to say, but not much time to say it, so here goes:
This week I lost another 2.15%! For the longest time I was convinced I couldn't lose weight the normal way, so now every week when I have another (albeit small) percentage lost, it motivates me to keep trying to get healthy. Little by little is not something I'm used to. People who know me well know that I'm all or nothing with just about everything, so this business of taking it slow and easy is new for me. And I'm surprised that I like it! I feel so... normal!
Last time I posted, I mentioned my dumb eye. I went and saw an opthalmologist yesterday, and he couldn't find anything wrong, so that's good.. right? Except that I still have an undiagnosed bad eye. I stocked up on Vitamins A and D, zinc/copper, lutein and more Omega 3s.. let's see if I can practice what I'm always preaching and take care of it with vitamins. I asked the doc if there was anything I couldn't do, and he said to lay off the computer and rest my eyes. I asked him if he was sure that was it..? Maybe I shouldn't be exercising?? But I think I looked too hopeful, and he quickly assured me that I could indeed exercise. Doh.
This next week will be challenging, and not just because I no longer have a justifiable excuse not to exercise. I'm heading to Minneapolis for training. I leave tomorrow and won't be back until Friday evening, so this sugar-free thing is going to be tough! No per diem either, so those dessert menus are going to be larger than life. I'm going with a co-worker who is very active, so she'll probably drag me down to the exercise room at least once or twice. (Stupid bum eye that's not good for getting me out of exercise!) I'm hoping I can at least maintain, if nothing else.
I'll be incommunicado this week, but I'll post my (dreaded) results next Saturday. Expect some pretty serious self-loathing then, but for now I'm excited about 7.11% lost! I'm almost a third of the way there.
Thanks for listening. See you in a week!
This week I lost another 2.15%! For the longest time I was convinced I couldn't lose weight the normal way, so now every week when I have another (albeit small) percentage lost, it motivates me to keep trying to get healthy. Little by little is not something I'm used to. People who know me well know that I'm all or nothing with just about everything, so this business of taking it slow and easy is new for me. And I'm surprised that I like it! I feel so... normal!
Last time I posted, I mentioned my dumb eye. I went and saw an opthalmologist yesterday, and he couldn't find anything wrong, so that's good.. right? Except that I still have an undiagnosed bad eye. I stocked up on Vitamins A and D, zinc/copper, lutein and more Omega 3s.. let's see if I can practice what I'm always preaching and take care of it with vitamins. I asked the doc if there was anything I couldn't do, and he said to lay off the computer and rest my eyes. I asked him if he was sure that was it..? Maybe I shouldn't be exercising?? But I think I looked too hopeful, and he quickly assured me that I could indeed exercise. Doh.
This next week will be challenging, and not just because I no longer have a justifiable excuse not to exercise. I'm heading to Minneapolis for training. I leave tomorrow and won't be back until Friday evening, so this sugar-free thing is going to be tough! No per diem either, so those dessert menus are going to be larger than life. I'm going with a co-worker who is very active, so she'll probably drag me down to the exercise room at least once or twice. (Stupid bum eye that's not good for getting me out of exercise!) I'm hoping I can at least maintain, if nothing else.
I'll be incommunicado this week, but I'll post my (dreaded) results next Saturday. Expect some pretty serious self-loathing then, but for now I'm excited about 7.11% lost! I'm almost a third of the way there.
Thanks for listening. See you in a week!
Bah.
Frustrating day. I was home with Jett today, which made me realize a big weakness of mine. When I have a lot of downtime and don't keep myself busy, I eat. Idle eating. I literally cannot control it. I wasn't even hungry, and I barely even had a craving. But candy was available, so I ate it. And the more I ate, the more I felt like the day was shot so I may as well keep eating. Ughh. I feel like a total pile. Well, they say to have a cheat day every now and then to keep your metabolism guessing, but I'm really not feeling good about today at all. I felt so good when I was sugar-free. Now one day of sugar and I'm jittery and crabby and down.
On top of that, I still haven't exercised this week. I have a scary thing going on with my eye, and I'm a little afraid of what exertion might do to exacerbate the problem. I can't focus on anything with my left eye, and I occasionally have a shooting pain there, so it freaks me out a lot. My mom had a weird eye condition that required a procedure after which she had to stay face down for like six weeks. If I have something similar, I don't want to do anything that might make things worse. As a result, I'm relying on diet alone until I get some answers (Friday's my appointment). Until then, I need to get a cool eye patch or something.
Sorry to post such a bummer of an update. They can't all be up days. On a lighter note, I saw some before and after pictures of my cousin who has been working really hard for the past two months, and you can see some pretty dramatic changes. It's encouraging. So I'll stick with it. The next time I'm tempted to eat candy, I'm going to remember how I feel right now and maybe it will help me to just walk away.
All for now. Later, cats.
On top of that, I still haven't exercised this week. I have a scary thing going on with my eye, and I'm a little afraid of what exertion might do to exacerbate the problem. I can't focus on anything with my left eye, and I occasionally have a shooting pain there, so it freaks me out a lot. My mom had a weird eye condition that required a procedure after which she had to stay face down for like six weeks. If I have something similar, I don't want to do anything that might make things worse. As a result, I'm relying on diet alone until I get some answers (Friday's my appointment). Until then, I need to get a cool eye patch or something.
Sorry to post such a bummer of an update. They can't all be up days. On a lighter note, I saw some before and after pictures of my cousin who has been working really hard for the past two months, and you can see some pretty dramatic changes. It's encouraging. So I'll stick with it. The next time I'm tempted to eat candy, I'm going to remember how I feel right now and maybe it will help me to just walk away.
All for now. Later, cats.
Week 3 Results
Week three was a good week for me. I started my low-sugar diet, which, so far, has astounded me. More on that in a second. In week three, I lost 1.55%. Yeah!
Side note: I am wondering more and more why I decided to go with 22.3%. It seems like a totally arbitrary number. I should have rounded it to 22.5%.
About the low sugar diet. If you have never tried one, I highly recommend it. I have been amazed this week at how easy it was to forget about food. I am now much more aware of the hold that sugar can have over me. When I consumed a lot of 'white' foods (sugar, pasta, flour, etc), I never felt full and I felt hungry all the time. These are over-generalizations that don't quite convey how much I thought about food. Even as I'd eat lunch I would be thinking about what I would snack on in the afternoon and what I would pick up for supper. This week in particular was incredibly stressful at work, which, for me, always leads to more snacking and 'gimmes'. For some reason, when I am stressed out, I feel more entitled to eat. Like I deserve it because I'm having a bad day. Every single day was bad this week, so I find it remarkable that it was so easy to stay on track.
I've always known that sugar is addictive and creates a vicious cycle of wanting to eat more and more, but I also believed that it was just a matter of will power to overcome those urges. If you are currently wrestling with a diet that seems to be getting the best of you, try reducing your sugar and flour intake. If there's a way to avoid the constant fight with cravings all day, it's worth a try!
Just to further emphasize my point, I did not exercise once this week. I put in a lot of overtime at work, and by the time I got home at night I was so exhausted I couldn't possibly imagine facing Jillian Michaels. So the 2.5 lbs that came off this week were due entirely to cutting out sugar.
In this next week, exercise will be a priority. I'm anxious to see how well it works to combine this new way of eating with exercise.
Until next time! and please, if you read this portion of my blog, I would love to hear from you. Post what you're doing that works. Post your tricks. Post what motivates you. Post what you would recommend for me. I want to know more!
Side note: I am wondering more and more why I decided to go with 22.3%. It seems like a totally arbitrary number. I should have rounded it to 22.5%.
About the low sugar diet. If you have never tried one, I highly recommend it. I have been amazed this week at how easy it was to forget about food. I am now much more aware of the hold that sugar can have over me. When I consumed a lot of 'white' foods (sugar, pasta, flour, etc), I never felt full and I felt hungry all the time. These are over-generalizations that don't quite convey how much I thought about food. Even as I'd eat lunch I would be thinking about what I would snack on in the afternoon and what I would pick up for supper. This week in particular was incredibly stressful at work, which, for me, always leads to more snacking and 'gimmes'. For some reason, when I am stressed out, I feel more entitled to eat. Like I deserve it because I'm having a bad day. Every single day was bad this week, so I find it remarkable that it was so easy to stay on track.
I've always known that sugar is addictive and creates a vicious cycle of wanting to eat more and more, but I also believed that it was just a matter of will power to overcome those urges. If you are currently wrestling with a diet that seems to be getting the best of you, try reducing your sugar and flour intake. If there's a way to avoid the constant fight with cravings all day, it's worth a try!
Just to further emphasize my point, I did not exercise once this week. I put in a lot of overtime at work, and by the time I got home at night I was so exhausted I couldn't possibly imagine facing Jillian Michaels. So the 2.5 lbs that came off this week were due entirely to cutting out sugar.
In this next week, exercise will be a priority. I'm anxious to see how well it works to combine this new way of eating with exercise.
Until next time! and please, if you read this portion of my blog, I would love to hear from you. Post what you're doing that works. Post your tricks. Post what motivates you. Post what you would recommend for me. I want to know more!
Coffee Test
I decided one way I'm going to see if giving up sugar for two weeks makes a difference. Now I'm waving my hands in front of your face so you forget how awkwardly worded that sentence was.
First of all, let me say that yesterday was not my Day One for giving up sugar. I woke up about 7 minutes before I should have been at my desk, so I didn't have time to pack my breakfast and lunch and multitude of sugarless snacks. In fact, I started my day off with a 6 oz cup of coffee sweetened with 12 grams of sugar. (3 teaspoons) That's a lot of sugar for one cup of coffee.
I have been going strong so far today. In fact, my total intake for the day has been less than one gram of added sugar. Tonight I'm going to go to Extreme Pita and get the pita with the lowest amount of sugar.
Now then. Let's take a moment to reflect on how much I just digressed. (My sixth grade teacher always said "Now, then group." and I stared off into space for 8-9 seconds every time she said it because I couldn't figure out what it meant.)
Back to the coffee thing. When I'm done with two whole weeks of sugar freeness..ity, I'm going to make another cup of coffee and see how many grams of sugar I need before it's sweet enough. It will be interesting to see if I can add much less sugar and still have it taste sweet enough.
Much less. I feel like I need to stare off into space.
Will report back.
First of all, let me say that yesterday was not my Day One for giving up sugar. I woke up about 7 minutes before I should have been at my desk, so I didn't have time to pack my breakfast and lunch and multitude of sugarless snacks. In fact, I started my day off with a 6 oz cup of coffee sweetened with 12 grams of sugar. (3 teaspoons) That's a lot of sugar for one cup of coffee.
I have been going strong so far today. In fact, my total intake for the day has been less than one gram of added sugar. Tonight I'm going to go to Extreme Pita and get the pita with the lowest amount of sugar.
Now then. Let's take a moment to reflect on how much I just digressed. (My sixth grade teacher always said "Now, then group." and I stared off into space for 8-9 seconds every time she said it because I couldn't figure out what it meant.)
Back to the coffee thing. When I'm done with two whole weeks of sugar freeness..ity, I'm going to make another cup of coffee and see how many grams of sugar I need before it's sweet enough. It will be interesting to see if I can add much less sugar and still have it taste sweet enough.
Much less. I feel like I need to stare off into space.
Will report back.
*Sad Trombone*
Well, so far this blog is not helping me achieve my goals. I'm UP .48% this week. I'm coming off a half-week of being miserably sick, and I was hoping some dehydration would boost my numbers. heh. No excuses anymore, I'm getting back on track.
For a very long time, I have wanted to try a sugar-free diet. I don't mean sugar-free gum and sugar-free candy and sugar-free beverages.. I mean a diet where I limit my total table sugar intake to 20 grams a day or less. That's what I am going to start this week. I don't know that it will affect the scale so much as my overall energy. I'm anxious to try it. It will be interesting to see how the first two days compare to how I feel two weeks in. If I post anything overly crabby tomorrow or Tuesday, you'll know I'm sticking to my diet.
Since my cousin Wendy has wisely advised against any kind of chart involving pies, I will forego the visual aid again this week. Maybe next week I'll post some before and after pictures of my elbows. I have nice elbows.
For a very long time, I have wanted to try a sugar-free diet. I don't mean sugar-free gum and sugar-free candy and sugar-free beverages.. I mean a diet where I limit my total table sugar intake to 20 grams a day or less. That's what I am going to start this week. I don't know that it will affect the scale so much as my overall energy. I'm anxious to try it. It will be interesting to see how the first two days compare to how I feel two weeks in. If I post anything overly crabby tomorrow or Tuesday, you'll know I'm sticking to my diet.
Since my cousin Wendy has wisely advised against any kind of chart involving pies, I will forego the visual aid again this week. Maybe next week I'll post some before and after pictures of my elbows. I have nice elbows.
I'm on a Bloat
Just a quick entry to let you know that I'm a big loser! Well, not yet. I'm hooked on the Biggest Loser, and while I doubt you're interested in my actual weight or goal weight, I will let you know that I am trying to lose 20%. Well, actually.. 22.3%. Seems like a lot.. I just know that if I blog about it, it will keep me honest! I actually started a few weeks ago, and since then I have lost 3.89%. Yeah! I will weigh in once a week and post the percentage lost that week. Feel free to comment on your own success or hopes, and be sure to comment on what motivates you. I'll take tips, too!
I think it's important that I come up with some kind of visual. Maybe a pie chart. Or a graph of some kind. Hmm. I'm not good with visual aids. You might have to use your imagination. We'll see.
See you next week!
I think it's important that I come up with some kind of visual. Maybe a pie chart. Or a graph of some kind. Hmm. I'm not good with visual aids. You might have to use your imagination. We'll see.
See you next week!
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