Ok, that was hard, holidays always are. I had a lot of parties and I'm still experiencing the fallout from leftover halloween candy. Also the snow, cold and end of daylight saving time messed with my system, but I think I'm now back on track. And I have new help!
My dear friend has started a "Biggest Loser" challenge with her family. They've all added 30 dollars to the pot and whoever loses the most by the end of February gets all the money and the glory. So to help her stay accountable to someone, she is texting me her daily calorie intake at night and also her exercise and I'm doing the same. It really helps so much having someone to own up to and to support you. Yeah!
So if anyone else wants to get in on this action let me know. You can text me and I'll text you. It really helps! As always good luck.
Wednesday, November 4, 2009
Monday, November 2, 2009
Overdoing it and underdoing it.
Often when I tell people who are interested in losing weight about my program I get one of two responses. Either I hear that's good, but really to lose weight I'm going to need to cut my calories more than that. I'm going to need to cut back to 1200 calories a day. Or I hear that's nice but I don't need to count my calories I'm just going to "watch what I eat." While both of these methods may help you lose weight for a time, they both have problems.
I was talking to a lady yesterday and I noticed she was wearing a Bodybugg (a little device you wear on your arm that calculates how many calories you've burned). So I started talking to her about weightloss and how I've lost weight through counting calories and by starting to limit myself to just under 2000 and then more lately to 1800 calories a day. She insisted that to lose weight you had to eat no more than 1200 calories a day just like the women do on The Biggest Loser. I tried to tell her that I have successfully managed to lose 40lbs and have never once eaten as little as 1200 calories a day, but she wasn't having any of it.
The problem with eating so little is that it is not sustainable. The Biggest Loser is a rigorous 3 month show where they try to lose huge amounts of weight in a very short period of time. It reflects almost a sped up reality, no average person with a job and other responsiblities can lose weight like that. After a month or two of eating only 1200 calories a day you will not be able to continue with this program, it is just too taxing and also there is no where to go caloriewise after, 1200 is rockbottom. It is best to start at a number just below what you regularly burn in a day and then slowly drop that daily calorie limit throughout the months. You need to keep your body from getting used to a set number of calories.
On the flipside, just watching what you eat is not enough either and is actually harder than just counting your daily calories. First of all, you may deny yourself a lot of things you could actually have or overindulge in others because you don't know the exact calories of certain foods. You may say "I can never eat ice cream," when maybe you can eat a certain kind of ice cream that has lower calories than another kind or because you have consumed less calories today than another day. You may also go over on your calories because you don't realize how many calories are in a certain food. A salad may have a huge amount of calories with salad dressing and breaded/fried chicken but it's a "salad" so it must be good, right? Wrong!
Also this method gets very tiring because the results are often lacking. It's not an efficient way to lose weight. When you count your calories you know exactly what you can and can't have in a day, it also lets you stagger your calories in a week if you happen to go over your limit one day. And when you just watch your intake you don't know your limit, you have no boundaries; you're just guessing and that is really more frustrating than just keeping a daily food journal. Also calorie counting is a great way to learn the calories of foods. You are sometimes suprised what you can and can't eat. Another great reason to have a food journal is you can go back and look at your eating trends. How do you do on certain days of the week and what do you need to adjust? My food journal includes not only my calories but occasionally my weight and measurements so I can track progress and my physical exercise for the day. I also write the things I did that day, so it is truly more than just a food journal!
Ok I know this has been along post, but to my friends who are really wanting to lose weight there is no substitute for keeping track of all of your calories, you don't need to over do it or under do it. In the end it will make the whole process easier and more acheivable than you ever imagined. Good luck!
I was talking to a lady yesterday and I noticed she was wearing a Bodybugg (a little device you wear on your arm that calculates how many calories you've burned). So I started talking to her about weightloss and how I've lost weight through counting calories and by starting to limit myself to just under 2000 and then more lately to 1800 calories a day. She insisted that to lose weight you had to eat no more than 1200 calories a day just like the women do on The Biggest Loser. I tried to tell her that I have successfully managed to lose 40lbs and have never once eaten as little as 1200 calories a day, but she wasn't having any of it.
The problem with eating so little is that it is not sustainable. The Biggest Loser is a rigorous 3 month show where they try to lose huge amounts of weight in a very short period of time. It reflects almost a sped up reality, no average person with a job and other responsiblities can lose weight like that. After a month or two of eating only 1200 calories a day you will not be able to continue with this program, it is just too taxing and also there is no where to go caloriewise after, 1200 is rockbottom. It is best to start at a number just below what you regularly burn in a day and then slowly drop that daily calorie limit throughout the months. You need to keep your body from getting used to a set number of calories.
On the flipside, just watching what you eat is not enough either and is actually harder than just counting your daily calories. First of all, you may deny yourself a lot of things you could actually have or overindulge in others because you don't know the exact calories of certain foods. You may say "I can never eat ice cream," when maybe you can eat a certain kind of ice cream that has lower calories than another kind or because you have consumed less calories today than another day. You may also go over on your calories because you don't realize how many calories are in a certain food. A salad may have a huge amount of calories with salad dressing and breaded/fried chicken but it's a "salad" so it must be good, right? Wrong!
Also this method gets very tiring because the results are often lacking. It's not an efficient way to lose weight. When you count your calories you know exactly what you can and can't have in a day, it also lets you stagger your calories in a week if you happen to go over your limit one day. And when you just watch your intake you don't know your limit, you have no boundaries; you're just guessing and that is really more frustrating than just keeping a daily food journal. Also calorie counting is a great way to learn the calories of foods. You are sometimes suprised what you can and can't eat. Another great reason to have a food journal is you can go back and look at your eating trends. How do you do on certain days of the week and what do you need to adjust? My food journal includes not only my calories but occasionally my weight and measurements so I can track progress and my physical exercise for the day. I also write the things I did that day, so it is truly more than just a food journal!
Ok I know this has been along post, but to my friends who are really wanting to lose weight there is no substitute for keeping track of all of your calories, you don't need to over do it or under do it. In the end it will make the whole process easier and more acheivable than you ever imagined. Good luck!
Monday, October 12, 2009
Weight Loss Worry
I know it's been awhile since I've posted anything, but the reason is I would have felt like a bit of a hypocrite writing a weight loss blog when I wasn't losing any weight! From the beginning of September until the beginning of October I was just losing and gaining the same pound over and over again. It wasn't until this last week or so that I've been able to make some good progress again.
It wasn't all in vain though. I think I've learned a few things about weight loss. The biggest thing I realized is that stress can play a big factor in weightloss. I was very stressed this past month with moving into a new house among other things and just not seeing any progress on the scale was stressful too! I was getting discouraged. I was still counting calories, but had quite a few way over the calorie limit days and some stress eating too. But now I think I'll be better prepared and ready for stressful times. If I know I'm going through a stressful time I'm just going to recognize that my weight loss will probably suffer and just ride out the storm.
I'm happy to report now that I have lost almost 35 pounds in total since beginning this program in May and it's totally been worth it, even with all the ups and downs. So get out there and get working on it. You can do it too!
It wasn't all in vain though. I think I've learned a few things about weight loss. The biggest thing I realized is that stress can play a big factor in weightloss. I was very stressed this past month with moving into a new house among other things and just not seeing any progress on the scale was stressful too! I was getting discouraged. I was still counting calories, but had quite a few way over the calorie limit days and some stress eating too. But now I think I'll be better prepared and ready for stressful times. If I know I'm going through a stressful time I'm just going to recognize that my weight loss will probably suffer and just ride out the storm.
I'm happy to report now that I have lost almost 35 pounds in total since beginning this program in May and it's totally been worth it, even with all the ups and downs. So get out there and get working on it. You can do it too!
Sunday, September 13, 2009
A Few of Resources
One book that I've found interesting is Eat This, Not That. It gives good ideas on healthier food substitutions.
Also I found this site the other day: http://primusweb.com/fitnesspartner/jumpsite/calculat.htm. It helps you figure out how many calories you've burned for a certain activity. Kind of interesting.
One more thing: I like the magazine, Prevention. I think you can sometimes get free copies at the pharmacy. It has good short articles on weightloss and healthy living. http://www.prevention.com/cda/channelpage.do?channel=weight.loss
Discouragement
Whenever you are trying to improve yourself, in any way, you are bound to have setbacks. I have gotten discouraged several times throughout this weight loss process. Usually this happens when I go drastically over my calories (4-500 or more) or when I reach what feels like a plateau and I'm not losing as much as I think I should. But the only thing I have be able to do about it is to just forget about it and keep going and the weight eventually comes off.
In July I went on vacation and for 4 days I didn't count any calories. By the end of the trip I had gained two pounds! But I didn't give up, I got home and started keeping my food journal and dropped those pounds and more. I've found that vacations, holidays, barbeques, potlucks and even just eating out are hard times to keep calorie control. Sometimes I have to label a day as a "free day" or eat less the next day to compensate for what I ate the day before. This is called zig-zagging and it's also a good way to keep your weight from plateauing too. Instead of keeping your calories consistent each day (which is nigh unto impossible to do) you eat more some days and less others in a week. This helps your body not get into a routine.
I think they main point here is don't beat up on yourself for setbacks, just call that day or two a wash and move forward. It's so worth it. Good luck!
In July I went on vacation and for 4 days I didn't count any calories. By the end of the trip I had gained two pounds! But I didn't give up, I got home and started keeping my food journal and dropped those pounds and more. I've found that vacations, holidays, barbeques, potlucks and even just eating out are hard times to keep calorie control. Sometimes I have to label a day as a "free day" or eat less the next day to compensate for what I ate the day before. This is called zig-zagging and it's also a good way to keep your weight from plateauing too. Instead of keeping your calories consistent each day (which is nigh unto impossible to do) you eat more some days and less others in a week. This helps your body not get into a routine.
I think they main point here is don't beat up on yourself for setbacks, just call that day or two a wash and move forward. It's so worth it. Good luck!
Thursday, September 10, 2009
More on Calorie Counting
I try to think of my daily calories like I do the hours in my day. Just like I don’t want to waste the 24 hours I have in a day, I don’t want to waste the calories I am allotted in a day. One of the hardest things to do is put down and stop eating something that you’re not really enjoying or you don’t think is worth your calories, but it is so important! If I’m eating a brownie that isn’t great I try to give it or throw it away, instead of wasting the calories.
For me I try to allot my calories this way, adjust for yourself as necessary:
Breakfast 300 calories
Snacks 100-200 calories
Lunch 400-500 calories
Snacks 100-200 calories
Dinner 500-600 calories
Snacks 100 calories
This puts you between 1500 and 1900 calories per day, which is great. It is better to spread your calories out through the day than to eat a lot at one time. This way you can burn your calories throughout the day, instead of them going straight to fat. So those snacks are important! Any snack that is 100 calories or less and is bigger than a tablespoon is good, that way you can have two if you need them between meals.
When counting my calories at the end of the day I have to do a lot of guessing, when I can’t find an exact calorie count. When I do have to guess I always overestimate a bit, just so I’m not consuming more calories than I think I am.
Ok that’s all for now. Best of luck.
For me I try to allot my calories this way, adjust for yourself as necessary:
Breakfast 300 calories
Snacks 100-200 calories
Lunch 400-500 calories
Snacks 100-200 calories
Dinner 500-600 calories
Snacks 100 calories
This puts you between 1500 and 1900 calories per day, which is great. It is better to spread your calories out through the day than to eat a lot at one time. This way you can burn your calories throughout the day, instead of them going straight to fat. So those snacks are important! Any snack that is 100 calories or less and is bigger than a tablespoon is good, that way you can have two if you need them between meals.
When counting my calories at the end of the day I have to do a lot of guessing, when I can’t find an exact calorie count. When I do have to guess I always overestimate a bit, just so I’m not consuming more calories than I think I am.
Ok that’s all for now. Best of luck.
Wednesday, September 9, 2009
For Teresa: Before and After
Teresa wanted me to post before and after pics. Hopefully there will be a few more in the coming months.
January 2009 vs. August 2009-I've still got a ways to go, but good progress!
January 2009 vs. August 2009-I've still got a ways to go, but good progress!
Accountability
Another thing that helps when you are beginning to lose weight is to tell someone about it and keep them up to date on how you are doing. In a way it makes you accountable and motivates you to keep going. This summer I told my co-worker who I spend a lot of time with about my calorie counting. She saw my notebooks and knew what I was trying to accomplish. She was also working on losing weight, so we could talk about our triumphs and setbacks. It's great to have that kind of support system.
This blog is kind of the same thing for me. I can't as easily go back to my old ways when I've announced to the world what I'm doing. So please make comments and be part of my support system and I'll do the same for you!
This blog is kind of the same thing for me. I can't as easily go back to my old ways when I've announced to the world what I'm doing. So please make comments and be part of my support system and I'll do the same for you!
A Word about Excercise
Most people think that a weight loss program must include long hours at the gym every week. I thought so for a long time, and it actually deterred me from starting a weight loss program, until I read this article, The Myth of Exercise: http://www.time.com/time/health/article/0,8599,1914857,00.html and reflected on my own recent weight loss. At the beginning of starting my program I decided I would go to the gym at least three times a week. That didn't last very long and now really I don't know the last time I've been to the gym, but I'm still losing weight. What I have been doing is walking or biking around my neighborhood a few times a week (for about 30 min.) and doing some hikes and walking to and from the bus stop a few times a week. Nothing super strenuous, just trying to stay active and it's worked!
The article I refrenced above cites a recent study that found while vigorous daily excercise (like at the gym) is good for cardiovascular health, it doesn't necessarily help in weight loss. And not for the reason you might think. Yes it does burn calories, but the study found the people who worked out tended to eat more calories after working out than they burned off because they were hungrier and that they were more sedentary throughout the day to conserve energy for their workout. Interesting...
Anyway, what I want to get across is that activity is good and contributes to weight loss, but you don't have to kill yourself at the gym to get it! I think that is heartening news, Good luck!
The article I refrenced above cites a recent study that found while vigorous daily excercise (like at the gym) is good for cardiovascular health, it doesn't necessarily help in weight loss. And not for the reason you might think. Yes it does burn calories, but the study found the people who worked out tended to eat more calories after working out than they burned off because they were hungrier and that they were more sedentary throughout the day to conserve energy for their workout. Interesting...
Anyway, what I want to get across is that activity is good and contributes to weight loss, but you don't have to kill yourself at the gym to get it! I think that is heartening news, Good luck!
Friday, September 4, 2009
What to Eat
The best thing about my plan is that I can eat pretty much whatever I want-just in moderation. But I will say that some foods are better than others for keeping you under your calorie limit and keeping you full.
Here is a short list of my new favorite low calorie snacks:
Zucchini-you have no idea how much zucchini I have eaten this summer, I think it is my magic diet food. It is only 31 calories for a whole medium sized zucchini, so you can eat a lot of it! Fry it up with a little olive oil and parmesan cheese, or make vegetable lasagne or zucchini crisp. Honestly the possibilities are endless.
Actually most vegetable have very few calories. 10 small snack carrots are only 30 calories.
String Cheese (low fat mozzerella)-70 to 80 calories-gives you protein and is delish.
Pretzels (in a bag)-48 small pretzel sticks are only 100 calories!
All fruit Strawberry bars-80 calories and a great treat when you're craving sweets
Quaker granola bars-90 to 100 calories-a good snack.
Low fat Cottage cheese-90 calories for a 1/2 cup.
Watermelon-only 46 calories for a cup of diced watermelon and it is filling too.
Triscuit Thin crisps-15 crackers for 130 calories
Any fruit-most servings of fruit are less than 100 calories (my favorites are blueberries and peaches).
It's really important to snack throughout the day. When I let myself get too hungry then I start reaching for unhealthy foods to fill me up. A little snack every hour or two really helps me.
Now as to what to avoid.
Avoid Fatty foods-This is not because I count up my fat grams for the day, I don't, but fatty foods are very calorie dense. For example 1 tablespoon of butter is 100 calories! That just doesn't go far. Also peanut butter is between 180 and 190 calories for two tablespoons. I'm not saying never eat these, but don't eat too much in one day.
Ice cream-I could put this under fatty foods but it deserves its only category. The truth is not all ice creams are created equal. Dreyer's Loaded Cookie dough ice cream has only 130 calories for 1/2 a cup, not too bad, but Haagen Dazs Cookies and Cream has 270 calories for half a cup! That's a not so good. Actually the Dreyer's ice cream is very good, a great alternative to other ice creams.
Soda, juices, etc.-these are just empty calories, don't fall for it. They don't fill you up and add a lot of calories.
Candy bars-Again there is the not so bad (100 grand-190 calories) and the bad Peanut Butter Twix (280 calories).
Anyway, I know none of these ideas are a revelation, but just some good ideas I have discovered on my way. Good Luck!
Here is a short list of my new favorite low calorie snacks:
Zucchini-you have no idea how much zucchini I have eaten this summer, I think it is my magic diet food. It is only 31 calories for a whole medium sized zucchini, so you can eat a lot of it! Fry it up with a little olive oil and parmesan cheese, or make vegetable lasagne or zucchini crisp. Honestly the possibilities are endless.
Actually most vegetable have very few calories. 10 small snack carrots are only 30 calories.
String Cheese (low fat mozzerella)-70 to 80 calories-gives you protein and is delish.
Pretzels (in a bag)-48 small pretzel sticks are only 100 calories!
All fruit Strawberry bars-80 calories and a great treat when you're craving sweets
Quaker granola bars-90 to 100 calories-a good snack.
Low fat Cottage cheese-90 calories for a 1/2 cup.
Watermelon-only 46 calories for a cup of diced watermelon and it is filling too.
Triscuit Thin crisps-15 crackers for 130 calories
Any fruit-most servings of fruit are less than 100 calories (my favorites are blueberries and peaches).
It's really important to snack throughout the day. When I let myself get too hungry then I start reaching for unhealthy foods to fill me up. A little snack every hour or two really helps me.
Now as to what to avoid.
Avoid Fatty foods-This is not because I count up my fat grams for the day, I don't, but fatty foods are very calorie dense. For example 1 tablespoon of butter is 100 calories! That just doesn't go far. Also peanut butter is between 180 and 190 calories for two tablespoons. I'm not saying never eat these, but don't eat too much in one day.
Ice cream-I could put this under fatty foods but it deserves its only category. The truth is not all ice creams are created equal. Dreyer's Loaded Cookie dough ice cream has only 130 calories for 1/2 a cup, not too bad, but Haagen Dazs Cookies and Cream has 270 calories for half a cup! That's a not so good. Actually the Dreyer's ice cream is very good, a great alternative to other ice creams.
Soda, juices, etc.-these are just empty calories, don't fall for it. They don't fill you up and add a lot of calories.
Candy bars-Again there is the not so bad (100 grand-190 calories) and the bad Peanut Butter Twix (280 calories).
Anyway, I know none of these ideas are a revelation, but just some good ideas I have discovered on my way. Good Luck!
Sunday, August 23, 2009
What I Ate
Here is an example of a food journal entry for a day. Obviously I'm not shying away from things I like to eat sometimes (i.e. frenchfries), but I just make sure I either have a smaller portion or adjust my eating for the rest of my day. To find out the calories of many, many foods go to http://www.calorieking.com/.
Sat June 13th:
Special K with red berries cereal 120
Milk 2% 120
Chicken 186
Bun 200?
Artichoke dip 200?
Bacon small pieces (2) 100
French fries 450?
Whole fruit bar 80
Cookie pack 100
Slimfast bar 140
marshmellows 80
fudge bar 100
Total: 1876
Sat June 13th:
Special K with red berries cereal 120
Milk 2% 120
Chicken 186
Bun 200?
Artichoke dip 200?
Bacon small pieces (2) 100
French fries 450?
Whole fruit bar 80
Cookie pack 100
Slimfast bar 140
marshmellows 80
fudge bar 100
Total: 1876
The Beginning...
Hello, welcome to my new blog! I know there are a million and one websites devoted to losing weight, but I wanted to give my own personal take on the subject for any of my family and friends who are interested. At the end of April I decided it was finally time that I got serious about losing my excess weight. The weight has literally been a drag on my whole life and I felt like it was holding me back from doing the things I wanted to do, but I also knew I wasn't very good at dieting or exercising. So I came up with a plan that I felt like I could follow which was based on sound science and if need be could be practiced the rest of my life. So I started April 29, 2009 and have now lost almost 30 lbs (almost two dress sizes). So that was about 17 weeks ago, totalling a loss of about 1.75 lbs a week. So I know that pounds aren't flying off, but I'm making respectable (sensible) progress and I don't feel like I'm risking my health in any way.
So how did I come up with my plan and what is the basis of it? Well I recently had read a little blurb in a magazine citing a study that found that people who kept a food journal were more apt to lose weight than those who didn't (this article is a good little read, check it out: http://www.webmd.com/diet/news/20080708/keeping-food-diary-helps-lose-weight).
Ok, I thought, I can do that, I'll write down everything I eat. I didn't think it would be fun or neccessarily convenient, but I thought it was doable. Then I decided to take it a step further, I would also write down the number of calories for each thing I ate in a day and tally the calories up at the end of the day. Further I would try to keep my calories within a certain range. I chose to keep my daily caloric intake between 1600 and 2000 calories (of course my calories have usually ended up being closer to the 2000 end and sometimes over!).
Next, how did I arrive at those numbers? Well to lose weight I knew that I had to take in less calories than I burned in a day. So I went to this website, http://www.freedieting.com/tools/calorie_calculator.htm (I really like this website, it helped me a lot in developing my plan) which helped me figure out how many calories a person of my size and activity level generally burns in a day. So for me to maintain that current weight that I was at I could eat between 2381 and 2078 calories/day, but to have fat loss I would need to eat between 1905 and 1760 calories/day. The first number reflects if I worked out 3 days a week, the second number is if I got little to no excercise that week. Of course excercising more would allow me to eat more calories. I've decided the key here is to start with something very managable, that is why I chose 2000 calories as my upperlimit. I knew I could do that without feeling like I was starving all the time. I would encourage you to not go below 1500 calories for any length of time. This is extreme dieting and you won't be able to keep it up and may have negative side effects.
So that was the basis of the plan, but of course I have learned a lot along the way that I plan to share in later posts. But if you think this is something that you would like to start doing I encourage you to figure out how many calories you need a day at the website above and then get a notebook and start writing. Consistency is the key. Best of luck!
So how did I come up with my plan and what is the basis of it? Well I recently had read a little blurb in a magazine citing a study that found that people who kept a food journal were more apt to lose weight than those who didn't (this article is a good little read, check it out: http://www.webmd.com/diet/news/20080708/keeping-food-diary-helps-lose-weight).
Ok, I thought, I can do that, I'll write down everything I eat. I didn't think it would be fun or neccessarily convenient, but I thought it was doable. Then I decided to take it a step further, I would also write down the number of calories for each thing I ate in a day and tally the calories up at the end of the day. Further I would try to keep my calories within a certain range. I chose to keep my daily caloric intake between 1600 and 2000 calories (of course my calories have usually ended up being closer to the 2000 end and sometimes over!).
Next, how did I arrive at those numbers? Well to lose weight I knew that I had to take in less calories than I burned in a day. So I went to this website, http://www.freedieting.com/tools/calorie_calculator.htm (I really like this website, it helped me a lot in developing my plan) which helped me figure out how many calories a person of my size and activity level generally burns in a day. So for me to maintain that current weight that I was at I could eat between 2381 and 2078 calories/day, but to have fat loss I would need to eat between 1905 and 1760 calories/day. The first number reflects if I worked out 3 days a week, the second number is if I got little to no excercise that week. Of course excercising more would allow me to eat more calories. I've decided the key here is to start with something very managable, that is why I chose 2000 calories as my upperlimit. I knew I could do that without feeling like I was starving all the time. I would encourage you to not go below 1500 calories for any length of time. This is extreme dieting and you won't be able to keep it up and may have negative side effects.
So that was the basis of the plan, but of course I have learned a lot along the way that I plan to share in later posts. But if you think this is something that you would like to start doing I encourage you to figure out how many calories you need a day at the website above and then get a notebook and start writing. Consistency is the key. Best of luck!
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