Yes, I took a little blogging hiatus...a little time-out to go through a legalized separation from my husband. Yes, a very stressful time where I went down to 112 pounds, and then stayed steady at 116...and then over the last two months ballooned to 127.4 pounds at my personal weigh-in an hour ago.
Egad!
I haven't weighed that much in a long time. I like to be 120 at the most. So now I have to figure out why this is happening. I'm still exercising regularly. But...I can only surmise it's eating habits. I have probably fallen into the trap of feeling stressed = devouring comfort foods. For me that means chocolate and Ritz crackers.
First off, it's important for me to recognize that I am, in fact, gaining weight. It had been a while since I weighed myself, but I'd noticed my clothes were fitting tighter. The scale cinched it. I'd put on ten pounds in two months. Second off, I need to forgive myself for this. It's been a very tough several months, and dealing with so many issues between myself and my ex has been detrimental to my health in many ways. Overeating obviously being one.
So what's a girl to do?
I know that 3,000 calories = 1 pound. I want to lose 10 pounds. Therefore, I need to burn an extra 30,000 calories. That's roughly 1,000 calories a day if I want to do it in a month. 500 calories a day if I want to do it in two months.
My goal, then, is to take care of this in 1-2 months time. To help me, I am using an app called My Fitness Pal. I downloaded it to my iPhone. My goal is to add only 1,200 calories (or less) a day to my diet. It's 1 in the afternoon now, and I have already eaten 974 calories. I have worked off 1,080 calories. If I can eat a small snack and then later consume a healthy dinner (with a controlled portion), I should be able to achieve the 1,200 or less total calories, and slowly as I continue this plan, take off the extra weight.
I will keep this site updated on my success.
Showing posts with label weight loss. Show all posts
Showing posts with label weight loss. Show all posts
Friday, August 9, 2013
Saturday, January 5, 2013
10 Ways to Simplify the Dieting Process
A show of hands, please. Who has started off 2013 with the pledge to lose weight?
Yes. Probably everyone reading this post. I've been reading on Facebook about people's plans to shed pounds and the struggles they're already having, and it's only day 5.
I've read other people's advice, heard excuses, and already have read from a few people that they want to give up.
Good ol' Day 5.
Okay, I have my own advice, and if you've been reading my blog you know what changes I advocate already. But here I'm going to list 10 ways to make dieting less tedious. How do I know? Because I'm living proof. People think that because I'm a size 2 that I've always been a light weight. The truth is, I gained a lot of weight with each of my pregnancies. However, I refused to be complacent, mainly because my health was at risk, and I worked hard to get down to a smaller size. Each time.
I put on over 50 pounds with each pregnancy. After giving birth, I still had 35-40 pounds to lose. Nursing helped, I will admit, but it still took hard work and determination, especially since I didn't go hopping on the treadmill the second I gave birth. I was sore. Uncomfortable. Exhausted. And not ready to do anything but be a round-the-clock baby feeder.
There are other times in my life where I gained weight, too. One such time was when I was taking my son to a special Apple video camp and ended up consuming my lunches while there. I kid you not, in one week I gained eight pounds. From eating what I thought was healthy food but turned out to be an overabundance of calories...about a thousand more a day than I was accustomed to eating! Some of the weight may have been bloat from the salt, too. But when I stepped on that scale, I knew I had to take the dang weight off.
I hate diets.
I know you do, too. I don't believe the advertisements where people are grinning like fools as they chug a green shake or jog (without panting) across a bridge at sunset. Those are fantasies. Dieting sucks. Not eating what you want when you want sucks. But here is how you can make it easier on yourself:
1) DON'T try to modify your diet AND exercise right off the bat. Choose one to focus on. If you choose exercise (which is what I would choose), make sure you talk to your doctor so that he or she can make sure you can start up an exercise routine without a problem. See #2. If you try to do both at once, it can be very overwhelming as your body tries to adjust. You will feel the hunger. Intensely. So exercise the first month, until you get into a pattern, then slowly introduce dietary changes.
2) When exercising (if you haven't been active in a while), start slow and build up. Hop on the elliptical and aim for five minutes. Then grab a 2-pound weight and do arm lifts. Go back on the elliptical for another five minutes. After three rounds in all, call it a day. Make sure you stretch afterward! Over the next few weeks, take longer intervals.
3) Start slow with food as well. People want to make an instant change and throw out all their chips and chocolate (that's what they tell you to do on these TV shows that are all about the health). Do this and you will be miserable. You will find yourself in the middle of the evening mixing a bowl of cookie dough and eating the whole thing in one sitting. I know, because I was there. Instead, add a salad to accompany your hamburger and fries. Make sure the portion size of the burger and fries are smaller. (At a restaurant, cut off part of the burger and halve the fries. Ask the waitress to take these portions away as you start your meal. Or ask her to have the cook give you less fries and a smaller burger. They probably won't adjust the cost, but isn't the cost of your health more important?)
4) When you start an exercise plan, make sure you keep a regular schedule. For example, if you decide you will work out Monday, Wednesday and Friday at 6 am, even if you don't feel like getting up, do it anyway. In about six weeks you will adjust so that when you don't exercise, you'll feel like you're missing something important. You will also have more energy. So as you're trying to find your Reebok's in the dark, remind yourself that eventually this will become a habit.
5) Treat exercise like a moment of meditation for the mind. Download your favorite music and work out to it. Think about the good things you are doing for yourself. Look into the future and picture other ways to improve your life. How will you complete these projects? Dare to daydream. It's probably the only time of the day when you won't feel rushed. Consider it "Me Time."
6) When you feel the time is right to begin dietary changes, start by adding soup to your meals. Soup and crackers make a good, hearty lunch. And the liquid will help fool your stomach into feeling full.
7) Stop drinking soda and juice. Drinking your calories is the easiest way to gain weight. Even diet sodas are NO GOOD. They make you want to eat more. Stick to water, coffee, unsweetened hot or iced tea (or tea with a little sugar. I hate sugar substitutes. Sugar itself does not contain a whole lot of calories.)
8) DON'T try to lose a lot of weight all at once. Slow and steady is healthier, and it will stay off longer because you are making lifestyle changes, not rushing into some fad diet that works only in the short term. You are revising your eating and exercising habits. This is not going to be something you will only do until the weight comes off. You will be eating and exercising like this for the rest of your life. So take your time getting to where you feel comfortable. Don't obsess about it. Just do it.
9) Find activities you enjoy. If you like to dance, put on some music and dance after you get home from work. If you like tennis, get out on the courts weekly with a friend. Which brings me to my last bit of advice.
10) Do this with a friend. Or several friends. You can help motivate each other. Help one another steer clear of the foods you should be avoiding. Pat one another on the back with each success. I will admit, I did it alone without a friend. But I went to the YMCA and found myself competing with the person beside me, trying to work harder and faster to keep up with him or her. It worked. And they never even knew I was in competition with them.
In the end, I lost my extra weight. I continue to eat well and exercise regularly, but I also have a bagel for lunch and I pretty much consume a piece of cheese daily. And I always eat something sweet. Just not a slice of cheesecake or a super-sized candy bar. I might eat half the cheesecake. Savoring it instead of gulping it down. Or four Hershey's kisses with a handful of pretzels. Everything in moderation.
Which takes me to my last piece of advice: Enjoy your food. Eat small snacks in-between meals so you aren't starved by dinnertime and end up overeating. Enjoy the blackened salmon. Take time with your vegetable pizza. Sip your wine.
Eventually, losing weight won't be so hard.
Yes. Probably everyone reading this post. I've been reading on Facebook about people's plans to shed pounds and the struggles they're already having, and it's only day 5.
I've read other people's advice, heard excuses, and already have read from a few people that they want to give up.
Good ol' Day 5.
Okay, I have my own advice, and if you've been reading my blog you know what changes I advocate already. But here I'm going to list 10 ways to make dieting less tedious. How do I know? Because I'm living proof. People think that because I'm a size 2 that I've always been a light weight. The truth is, I gained a lot of weight with each of my pregnancies. However, I refused to be complacent, mainly because my health was at risk, and I worked hard to get down to a smaller size. Each time.
I put on over 50 pounds with each pregnancy. After giving birth, I still had 35-40 pounds to lose. Nursing helped, I will admit, but it still took hard work and determination, especially since I didn't go hopping on the treadmill the second I gave birth. I was sore. Uncomfortable. Exhausted. And not ready to do anything but be a round-the-clock baby feeder.
There are other times in my life where I gained weight, too. One such time was when I was taking my son to a special Apple video camp and ended up consuming my lunches while there. I kid you not, in one week I gained eight pounds. From eating what I thought was healthy food but turned out to be an overabundance of calories...about a thousand more a day than I was accustomed to eating! Some of the weight may have been bloat from the salt, too. But when I stepped on that scale, I knew I had to take the dang weight off.
I hate diets.
I know you do, too. I don't believe the advertisements where people are grinning like fools as they chug a green shake or jog (without panting) across a bridge at sunset. Those are fantasies. Dieting sucks. Not eating what you want when you want sucks. But here is how you can make it easier on yourself:
1) DON'T try to modify your diet AND exercise right off the bat. Choose one to focus on. If you choose exercise (which is what I would choose), make sure you talk to your doctor so that he or she can make sure you can start up an exercise routine without a problem. See #2. If you try to do both at once, it can be very overwhelming as your body tries to adjust. You will feel the hunger. Intensely. So exercise the first month, until you get into a pattern, then slowly introduce dietary changes.
2) When exercising (if you haven't been active in a while), start slow and build up. Hop on the elliptical and aim for five minutes. Then grab a 2-pound weight and do arm lifts. Go back on the elliptical for another five minutes. After three rounds in all, call it a day. Make sure you stretch afterward! Over the next few weeks, take longer intervals.
3) Start slow with food as well. People want to make an instant change and throw out all their chips and chocolate (that's what they tell you to do on these TV shows that are all about the health). Do this and you will be miserable. You will find yourself in the middle of the evening mixing a bowl of cookie dough and eating the whole thing in one sitting. I know, because I was there. Instead, add a salad to accompany your hamburger and fries. Make sure the portion size of the burger and fries are smaller. (At a restaurant, cut off part of the burger and halve the fries. Ask the waitress to take these portions away as you start your meal. Or ask her to have the cook give you less fries and a smaller burger. They probably won't adjust the cost, but isn't the cost of your health more important?)
4) When you start an exercise plan, make sure you keep a regular schedule. For example, if you decide you will work out Monday, Wednesday and Friday at 6 am, even if you don't feel like getting up, do it anyway. In about six weeks you will adjust so that when you don't exercise, you'll feel like you're missing something important. You will also have more energy. So as you're trying to find your Reebok's in the dark, remind yourself that eventually this will become a habit.
5) Treat exercise like a moment of meditation for the mind. Download your favorite music and work out to it. Think about the good things you are doing for yourself. Look into the future and picture other ways to improve your life. How will you complete these projects? Dare to daydream. It's probably the only time of the day when you won't feel rushed. Consider it "Me Time."
6) When you feel the time is right to begin dietary changes, start by adding soup to your meals. Soup and crackers make a good, hearty lunch. And the liquid will help fool your stomach into feeling full.
7) Stop drinking soda and juice. Drinking your calories is the easiest way to gain weight. Even diet sodas are NO GOOD. They make you want to eat more. Stick to water, coffee, unsweetened hot or iced tea (or tea with a little sugar. I hate sugar substitutes. Sugar itself does not contain a whole lot of calories.)
8) DON'T try to lose a lot of weight all at once. Slow and steady is healthier, and it will stay off longer because you are making lifestyle changes, not rushing into some fad diet that works only in the short term. You are revising your eating and exercising habits. This is not going to be something you will only do until the weight comes off. You will be eating and exercising like this for the rest of your life. So take your time getting to where you feel comfortable. Don't obsess about it. Just do it.
9) Find activities you enjoy. If you like to dance, put on some music and dance after you get home from work. If you like tennis, get out on the courts weekly with a friend. Which brings me to my last bit of advice.
10) Do this with a friend. Or several friends. You can help motivate each other. Help one another steer clear of the foods you should be avoiding. Pat one another on the back with each success. I will admit, I did it alone without a friend. But I went to the YMCA and found myself competing with the person beside me, trying to work harder and faster to keep up with him or her. It worked. And they never even knew I was in competition with them.
In the end, I lost my extra weight. I continue to eat well and exercise regularly, but I also have a bagel for lunch and I pretty much consume a piece of cheese daily. And I always eat something sweet. Just not a slice of cheesecake or a super-sized candy bar. I might eat half the cheesecake. Savoring it instead of gulping it down. Or four Hershey's kisses with a handful of pretzels. Everything in moderation.
Which takes me to my last piece of advice: Enjoy your food. Eat small snacks in-between meals so you aren't starved by dinnertime and end up overeating. Enjoy the blackened salmon. Take time with your vegetable pizza. Sip your wine.
Eventually, losing weight won't be so hard.
Wednesday, May 9, 2012
Lifestyle Changes
Recently a writer acquaintance of mine blogged about dieting. She wanted to lose weight and look good for the summer beach. Truth be told, I loathe the word diet. Oh, we all use it. "I can't have that third slice of cake, I'm on a diet." But what exactly does it mean? To me it sounds temporary. Like something borrowed that has to eventually be returned. "Thanks for the use of the diet, but I'm at the size I want to be, so you can have it back now."
If you are looking to lose weight, become more toned, or feel stronger and more vibrant, you need to consider a lifestyle change. It can be as small as walking a mile every other day or as encompassing as hitting the gym daily while noshing mainly on fruits and veggies. But this will have to continue the remainder of your life. Once you hit your target of, say, 140 pounds, if this is where you want to stay, you can't return to your old ways.
Here's what I mean. I apologize if you've read this story before in one of my other blog posts, but it bears repeating. When I was in my 30's I worked in a retail store. People brought in donuts and cake regularly. Maybe to ease the tedious days of folding shirts and sweaters? Maybe to celebrate a birthday? Whatever the reason, junk food was readily available. My co-workers didn't care for me passing on the invitation to indulge. Once in awhile I'd reach for a donut, but I knew I couldn't have more than one, nor could I eat one everyday. My metabolism was already showing signs of slowing, and I didn't want to encourage it to conk out altogether. The responses I'd get? "It's one donut, it's not gonna hurt you." And "You're skinny. You can stand to eat a couple donuts." Or "Look at you. You can eat what you want."
That was the point. I didn't eat what I wanted to eat. Between that and moving around a lot on the sales floor, I kept my weight steady for years. The truth is, the older you get, the more often you need to change both your diet and your exercise plan. That is, if you don't want to turn to mush by the time you're 70.
Those of you who have been steady readers understand that my main focus is keeping my cholesterol levels down. I could stand to lose a little belly fat (and some around my back), but for the most part I think I'm pretty healthy. But I exercise three times a week for at least an hour each time, and I don't consume much meat, and try to load up on the green stuff. I love my cookies and pastries, so there's my downfall. If I could quit my sugar addiction, I'd be perfect. But that's one lifestyle change I have yet to master.
Dieting is temporary. It's a way to trim the fat until you've hit your ideal weight. But it doesn't last because once you're there it's easy to think, "I did it! Now where's that ice cream sundae award I've been waiting for?" And suddenly you're sitting in the breakroom with a gigantic bag of Fritos in your lap. A lifestyle change? Fritos are replaced by carrot sticks and a couple of saltines. Dieting: "I'm at 135! Perfect! I was getting sick of running on the treadmill." Lifestyle change: "Running on the treadmill is getting lackluster. Maybe this week I'll master the Precor."
See the difference?
Oh, sure, a Frito or eight won't hurt once a week, and skipping the workout because you're not feeling well (or you've pulled a groin muscle) is fine. But being that it's now routine to eat better and get exercise, the break is temporary. Like a diet is temporary. Only better.
If you are looking to lose weight, become more toned, or feel stronger and more vibrant, you need to consider a lifestyle change. It can be as small as walking a mile every other day or as encompassing as hitting the gym daily while noshing mainly on fruits and veggies. But this will have to continue the remainder of your life. Once you hit your target of, say, 140 pounds, if this is where you want to stay, you can't return to your old ways.
Here's what I mean. I apologize if you've read this story before in one of my other blog posts, but it bears repeating. When I was in my 30's I worked in a retail store. People brought in donuts and cake regularly. Maybe to ease the tedious days of folding shirts and sweaters? Maybe to celebrate a birthday? Whatever the reason, junk food was readily available. My co-workers didn't care for me passing on the invitation to indulge. Once in awhile I'd reach for a donut, but I knew I couldn't have more than one, nor could I eat one everyday. My metabolism was already showing signs of slowing, and I didn't want to encourage it to conk out altogether. The responses I'd get? "It's one donut, it's not gonna hurt you." And "You're skinny. You can stand to eat a couple donuts." Or "Look at you. You can eat what you want."
That was the point. I didn't eat what I wanted to eat. Between that and moving around a lot on the sales floor, I kept my weight steady for years. The truth is, the older you get, the more often you need to change both your diet and your exercise plan. That is, if you don't want to turn to mush by the time you're 70.
Those of you who have been steady readers understand that my main focus is keeping my cholesterol levels down. I could stand to lose a little belly fat (and some around my back), but for the most part I think I'm pretty healthy. But I exercise three times a week for at least an hour each time, and I don't consume much meat, and try to load up on the green stuff. I love my cookies and pastries, so there's my downfall. If I could quit my sugar addiction, I'd be perfect. But that's one lifestyle change I have yet to master.
Dieting is temporary. It's a way to trim the fat until you've hit your ideal weight. But it doesn't last because once you're there it's easy to think, "I did it! Now where's that ice cream sundae award I've been waiting for?" And suddenly you're sitting in the breakroom with a gigantic bag of Fritos in your lap. A lifestyle change? Fritos are replaced by carrot sticks and a couple of saltines. Dieting: "I'm at 135! Perfect! I was getting sick of running on the treadmill." Lifestyle change: "Running on the treadmill is getting lackluster. Maybe this week I'll master the Precor."
See the difference?
Oh, sure, a Frito or eight won't hurt once a week, and skipping the workout because you're not feeling well (or you've pulled a groin muscle) is fine. But being that it's now routine to eat better and get exercise, the break is temporary. Like a diet is temporary. Only better.
Friday, March 9, 2012
Time to Make Time
One of the excuses I hear the most for not exercising is, "I don't have time." Trust me, I can relate. But here's something to consider. If you don't properly prioritize your well-being, you could end up sitting in a hospital bed wired to machines with all the time in the world. Or you could end up dead.
I'm not trying to scare you, I'm simply being realistic. Here are some basic facts from the CDC: in 2008, about 1 in 4 American deaths were caused by heart disease. Every year almost 785,000 Americans have a heart attack. More than half of those people have a second attack. Inactivity has been proven to be the most significant reason for a heart attack, followed by obesity and high blood pressure. See all the statistics here: http://www.cdc.gov/heartdisease/facts.htm
Here's another scary statistic, also from the CDC: 18.8 million people in the U.S. have been diagnosed with diabetes. Type 1 diabetes accounts for about 5% of the cases. There is no known way to prevent it. Type 2 diabetes accounts for the remainder, and one of the main causes has been established to be, again, obesity and inactivity. Many people discover when they lose a significant amount of weight and make healthier food choices, weight, they no longer have this type of diabetes.
So tell me again, do you think you can find time to exercise? I think you can.
Start walking more, even if you have to do it on your lunch break. Lift weights in front of the TV instead of chowing down on snacks. Drink water or unsweetened tea instead of soda (even diet soda will make you want to consume more food). Lighten your mochas. Keep an apple at your desk for when you crave something sweet. Jog in place while you talk on the phone. There is time, you just have to find it. Make your health a priority. Right now. Today. Turn off your computer and start moving.
Saturday, February 11, 2012
Six Secrets to Staying (or getting!) Slim
I know what it's like to feel, well, chunky. I gained a lot of weight with each pregnancy, only to have to work hard to get back into my clothes. It's no surprise to anyone, I'm sure, that it's easier to lose the weight when you haven't held onto it for years and years. But I'm posting how I succeeded in losing the weight, and the key to how I've kept it off.
Like everyone, I gain and lose a few pounds week to week. Our bodies are adept at knowing when we need to pad our bodies (for cold winters, preparing for ovulation, etc.) and when to let it go. But I have pretty much stayed the same size and weight since high school, and that's over twenty years, folks! I've had to change my strategy over the years, though, because what I could eat in my twenties is vastly different from what I put into my body now. My metabolism isn't the same, and that's biological. Sure, I exercise. But when I was twenty-two, I didn't have to exercise regularly and with such intensity.
That said, let me move on to my rules. They're the ones that work for me, and they might work for you, too. Some I've mentioned on my blog before. Some are new.
1) I do not consume soda. Why? Extra calories, for one thing. Calories I don't need. If I want a punch of caffeine, I have coffee or tea with very little added sugar (about a half a teaspoon). Twenty years ago I was dumping three heaping teaspoons into my tea. I gag thinking about that now. But what had happened was that I slowly became addicted to the sugar. I began drinking tea in my teens, and I started out with a teaspoon of sugar. But then I became used to it and no longer could tell if it was sweetened or not. In order to taste it, I needed to add a little more. When I was in my early thirties, I decided to break that habit. I started out by going cold turkey. No sugar at all. After awhile, I added a little bit of sugar (the half teaspoon). I could taste the sweetness! I never looked back. Before I was pregnant with my first child, I drank soda regularly. But I was told to avoid caffeine, so soda was out of the question, except for the occasional caffeine free Coke. Eventually all carbonated drinks gave me heartburn. Water and tea was all I could drink. After a few months, I didn't miss it. Today I believe it's one of the reasons I have been able to keep my weight down.
2) I eat cheese and crackers as a snack once a day. I know, I know. What's a gal with high cholesterol doing consuming cheese? But the truth is, I detest milk, and cheese is the best way to get a little calcium in my diet. Why is it on my list of weight tips? Because the protein in the cheese fills me up. I might eat eight low-fat Ritz crackers and a small block of cheese, and I'm good for hours. Not a lot of calories, but keeps me sated.
3) I make sure I get my exercise. Three times a week (four if I'm highly motivated), at least an hour each time. It's my "me" time. I go to the YMCA and watch TV (I don't watch it at home). I sweat and push myself. I do weights (Very important tip here! Building muscle helps to keep weight off! Spend twenty minutes three times a day on your arms...you will not regret it.)
4) I rarely eat out. I cook at home. Even chowing down on a peanut butter and jelly sandwich is better than diner or fast food. Why? Salt. Restaurants fill food with salt and it a) makes you thirsty so you drink more (terrible if you're drinking the soda) and b) makes you eat more. Eating salty foods makes you want to eat MORE salty foods. Think about it this way: when you're eating movie popcorn, how hard is it to put that bucket down and stop eating it? Even when you know you are full! Your taste buds love salt. They crave it. The more salt in your food, the more you will want to eat. Plus, when you eat at home, you know what fats are going into your body, and you won't be enticed by french fries and fried chicken. Most of us don't have fryers at home, and if we do, they're a pain to clean so we don't fry our food every night. Which brings me to my next point.
5) I avoid all fried food. Oh sure, occasionally I'll steal a french fry from my son's plate at Chili's, but I order soup and salad or a veggie burger when we go out. Once in a while I will treat myself to something fattening, but it's rare. And we don't hit up fast food places when we go out except for a special treat for the boys. And I order the salad and a small order of fries. Oh, and I do love their fruit and oatmeal. Get it without the maple and brown sugar topping, and you cut out calories without skimping on too much taste.
6) The last thing I do to stay slim is I snack on fruit. Ravenous? Eat a banana or an apple. It will help you eat less when you have your next meal. Filling up on blueberries is better than grabbing a handful of mini Oreos. Oh, and I try not to keep cookies around. If I want cookies, I have to make them from scratch. Makes me think twice about how badly I want them. Keep fruit available, not store-bought sweets. But keep ingredients for making cookies available. If you deprive yourself, you will be miserable and eat to feel happy.
Okay, that's it in a nutshell. Six simple secrets. Try these for a month, see what happens. I'll bet you'll find it's not so hard after all.
Like everyone, I gain and lose a few pounds week to week. Our bodies are adept at knowing when we need to pad our bodies (for cold winters, preparing for ovulation, etc.) and when to let it go. But I have pretty much stayed the same size and weight since high school, and that's over twenty years, folks! I've had to change my strategy over the years, though, because what I could eat in my twenties is vastly different from what I put into my body now. My metabolism isn't the same, and that's biological. Sure, I exercise. But when I was twenty-two, I didn't have to exercise regularly and with such intensity.
That said, let me move on to my rules. They're the ones that work for me, and they might work for you, too. Some I've mentioned on my blog before. Some are new.
1) I do not consume soda. Why? Extra calories, for one thing. Calories I don't need. If I want a punch of caffeine, I have coffee or tea with very little added sugar (about a half a teaspoon). Twenty years ago I was dumping three heaping teaspoons into my tea. I gag thinking about that now. But what had happened was that I slowly became addicted to the sugar. I began drinking tea in my teens, and I started out with a teaspoon of sugar. But then I became used to it and no longer could tell if it was sweetened or not. In order to taste it, I needed to add a little more. When I was in my early thirties, I decided to break that habit. I started out by going cold turkey. No sugar at all. After awhile, I added a little bit of sugar (the half teaspoon). I could taste the sweetness! I never looked back. Before I was pregnant with my first child, I drank soda regularly. But I was told to avoid caffeine, so soda was out of the question, except for the occasional caffeine free Coke. Eventually all carbonated drinks gave me heartburn. Water and tea was all I could drink. After a few months, I didn't miss it. Today I believe it's one of the reasons I have been able to keep my weight down.
2) I eat cheese and crackers as a snack once a day. I know, I know. What's a gal with high cholesterol doing consuming cheese? But the truth is, I detest milk, and cheese is the best way to get a little calcium in my diet. Why is it on my list of weight tips? Because the protein in the cheese fills me up. I might eat eight low-fat Ritz crackers and a small block of cheese, and I'm good for hours. Not a lot of calories, but keeps me sated.
3) I make sure I get my exercise. Three times a week (four if I'm highly motivated), at least an hour each time. It's my "me" time. I go to the YMCA and watch TV (I don't watch it at home). I sweat and push myself. I do weights (Very important tip here! Building muscle helps to keep weight off! Spend twenty minutes three times a day on your arms...you will not regret it.)
4) I rarely eat out. I cook at home. Even chowing down on a peanut butter and jelly sandwich is better than diner or fast food. Why? Salt. Restaurants fill food with salt and it a) makes you thirsty so you drink more (terrible if you're drinking the soda) and b) makes you eat more. Eating salty foods makes you want to eat MORE salty foods. Think about it this way: when you're eating movie popcorn, how hard is it to put that bucket down and stop eating it? Even when you know you are full! Your taste buds love salt. They crave it. The more salt in your food, the more you will want to eat. Plus, when you eat at home, you know what fats are going into your body, and you won't be enticed by french fries and fried chicken. Most of us don't have fryers at home, and if we do, they're a pain to clean so we don't fry our food every night. Which brings me to my next point.
5) I avoid all fried food. Oh sure, occasionally I'll steal a french fry from my son's plate at Chili's, but I order soup and salad or a veggie burger when we go out. Once in a while I will treat myself to something fattening, but it's rare. And we don't hit up fast food places when we go out except for a special treat for the boys. And I order the salad and a small order of fries. Oh, and I do love their fruit and oatmeal. Get it without the maple and brown sugar topping, and you cut out calories without skimping on too much taste.
6) The last thing I do to stay slim is I snack on fruit. Ravenous? Eat a banana or an apple. It will help you eat less when you have your next meal. Filling up on blueberries is better than grabbing a handful of mini Oreos. Oh, and I try not to keep cookies around. If I want cookies, I have to make them from scratch. Makes me think twice about how badly I want them. Keep fruit available, not store-bought sweets. But keep ingredients for making cookies available. If you deprive yourself, you will be miserable and eat to feel happy.
Okay, that's it in a nutshell. Six simple secrets. Try these for a month, see what happens. I'll bet you'll find it's not so hard after all.
Saturday, January 7, 2012
More on the False Fat Diet
Okay. We are hungry people, my husband and I. But we started this False Fat Diet on Tuesday and he has already lost about three pounds. I lost almost one pound. Of course, I'm not doing this for weight loss. I'm a size 2 or 4 (depending on the manufacturer), and it's hard enough to find clothes that fit. (Plus, I'm short, but too tall for petite sizes, and apparently most petite sizes are meant for great grandmothers anyway).
But I digress...I am doing this diet to help me get off my sugar and carb cravings, and end the bloat. Also, I hope the side effect of this new diet will be the lowering of my cholesterol. The last time I had it checked it had zoomed up, and I believe it's because I ate too many refined sugars and consumed too many carbohydrates. AND (I will admit) I was eating a lot of cheese. Daily. Saturated fats galore.
I have also been adding vitamins. B complex, D, E, Calcium, MGM supplements, and Omega 3s that make burps taste like salmon. I will be retaking my cholesterol test in March, and following up with a visit to my doctor (whom I see annually for physicals anyway).
My goal is to continue eating more fruits and vegetables and eat less saturated fats and sweets. A lot less. So far I'm doing well. I haven't made a batch of cookies yet!
Now I have amended this diet plan. I added Cheerios because, frankly, I'm sick of Rice Squares cereal. Which is ironic because last week I was bemoaning how sick I was of Cheerios. I have to admit, though, I really liked the Cream of Rice cereal with maple syrup (the real maple syrup, not the kind I usually buy that is mostly high fructose syrup).
Oh, and this diet cuts out high fructose syrup, too. I'm especially interested in seeing what happens to my LDL levels if I avoid it completely. I will, of course, keep you posted.
But right now, I'm hungry. I will eat a banana. I will not break down and shove cookies in my mouth. (New mantra.)
Wish me luck!
But I digress...I am doing this diet to help me get off my sugar and carb cravings, and end the bloat. Also, I hope the side effect of this new diet will be the lowering of my cholesterol. The last time I had it checked it had zoomed up, and I believe it's because I ate too many refined sugars and consumed too many carbohydrates. AND (I will admit) I was eating a lot of cheese. Daily. Saturated fats galore.
I have also been adding vitamins. B complex, D, E, Calcium, MGM supplements, and Omega 3s that make burps taste like salmon. I will be retaking my cholesterol test in March, and following up with a visit to my doctor (whom I see annually for physicals anyway).
My goal is to continue eating more fruits and vegetables and eat less saturated fats and sweets. A lot less. So far I'm doing well. I haven't made a batch of cookies yet!
Now I have amended this diet plan. I added Cheerios because, frankly, I'm sick of Rice Squares cereal. Which is ironic because last week I was bemoaning how sick I was of Cheerios. I have to admit, though, I really liked the Cream of Rice cereal with maple syrup (the real maple syrup, not the kind I usually buy that is mostly high fructose syrup).
Oh, and this diet cuts out high fructose syrup, too. I'm especially interested in seeing what happens to my LDL levels if I avoid it completely. I will, of course, keep you posted.
But right now, I'm hungry. I will eat a banana. I will not break down and shove cookies in my mouth. (New mantra.)
Wish me luck!
Sunday, August 7, 2011
Rule #1-Soda In Moderation, If At All
It's no surprise that cutting out soda or other high calorie drinks will lead to losing weight! According to www.sugarstacks.com, a 12 oz. Coca-Cola has 140 calories. That's 39 grams of sugar.An 8 oz. Snapple ice tea is 100 calories, 23 grams of sugar, a slightly better choice. One of these a day probably won't do much harm. But if you're sucking down three cans of soda a day, you're looking at adding on 420 calories of something with no nutritional value at all. And I'm not even going to go into the sodium count (bloated bellies, anyone?)
A medium iced coffee from McDonalds, according to the McDonald's menu, has 190 calories. A small coffee Coolata from Duncan Donuts, according to the Duncan Donuts site, is 400 calories. (A medium is 600, a large is 800.)
So what happens if you stick with water or unsweetened tea and coffee? You instantly take away at least 100 calories every day. If you usually drink an iced coffee or Coolatas every day, you could end up saving 200 or more calories a day. That adds up, folks. And just by changing what you drink you can lose weight over a period of a month.
What I drink every day: a cup of tea with a 1/2 teaspoon of raw sugar, and a cup of coffee from my Keurig with 1/3 teaspoon sugar and some powdered creamer, which generally adds 50 calories to my drink. Some days I go without the creamer. After that I drink water or iced tea flavored with either lemon or a little agave nectar. (Thanks to my friend Katie W. for introducing me to agave nectar!) I rarely drink soda or juice, although sometimes I use juice in recipes or smoothies.
Try going without your usual sugary drinks for a month. Let me know what happens. Tell me how many pounds you lose. I'll bet you'll surprise yourself!
A medium iced coffee from McDonalds, according to the McDonald's menu, has 190 calories. A small coffee Coolata from Duncan Donuts, according to the Duncan Donuts site, is 400 calories. (A medium is 600, a large is 800.)
So what happens if you stick with water or unsweetened tea and coffee? You instantly take away at least 100 calories every day. If you usually drink an iced coffee or Coolatas every day, you could end up saving 200 or more calories a day. That adds up, folks. And just by changing what you drink you can lose weight over a period of a month.
What I drink every day: a cup of tea with a 1/2 teaspoon of raw sugar, and a cup of coffee from my Keurig with 1/3 teaspoon sugar and some powdered creamer, which generally adds 50 calories to my drink. Some days I go without the creamer. After that I drink water or iced tea flavored with either lemon or a little agave nectar. (Thanks to my friend Katie W. for introducing me to agave nectar!) I rarely drink soda or juice, although sometimes I use juice in recipes or smoothies.
Try going without your usual sugary drinks for a month. Let me know what happens. Tell me how many pounds you lose. I'll bet you'll surprise yourself!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)