Now, this isn't a chronicle of my meals. That way lies disordered eating and boring reading. But I do find myself in a place where I'm eating literally four or five times as much veggies and infinity as much fruit. (It's not hard when you go from eating zero fruit to lots!) I am forcing it a little, but not too much; I'm just deliberately thinking of more ways to get in fruits and veggies.
So for dinner tonight I had broccoli with cheese, a chicken patty, a baked sweet potato and an apple- which stuffed me. But I spent most of the day pretty hungry(out running around doing things on a breakfast of grapes and clementines) so I guess it evens out. My favorite phrase is "Happy fat belly!", which refers to that perfect state of fullness, where you just feel utterly content. I'm pretty close to that now!
It's a little strange for me, but I find myself leaning away from fatty meats and cheese towards raw and lean vegan recipes. I'd say I'm eating at least one vegan meal a day(although my meals typically look more like snacks- for example, dinner last night was an apple with peanut butter.) I'm not sure how great it is for my belly, since I tend to have a hard time with raw plant foods, but I'm just taking it bit by bit.
I also joined my old gym today, which is a really fantastic place- great facilities, two pools(one with a waterslide, whee!) The people are super nice too. And I have to say that having access to a steam room and jacuzzi will make my winter!
Although I'm still feeling good about my diet, today and yesterday were kind of tough physically. I went to the river with my dog on Saturday, which was pretty strenuous for a girl out of condition. But the worst part could have happened to anyone of any condition- my sandal broke right after we started hiking, and my feet wound up pretty sore from wearing my water shoes. That made my walking less pleasant. (Just another reason to join the gym- it gives me a lot of options for exercise!)
Anyway, I'm still chugging along!
Showing posts with label diets. Show all posts
Showing posts with label diets. Show all posts
Monday, October 8, 2012
Sunday, October 7, 2012
Two weeks in
So I began eating my new way on Saturday, September 22nd and it's now Sunday, October 7th. Two weeks and one day. I managed to sneak into my mom's house yesterday and weigh myself, and I rang in at 288 lb. I'm not gonna lie, I was a little disappointed. But then I weigh that against the fact that I didn't have a "starting weight" because I didn't have a scale, and I refocus on the fact that health is my priority, not just weight loss. I do know that my high point, as far as I know, was 293 lb according to my doctor's scales last month. I'm also focusing on muscle gain, so weight in and of itself will not be the best measure. (I am also measuring myself with a measuring tape, but I felt it would be better to wait till next week to remeasure due to confuddledness.)
So, let's tally up the good so far:
I'm sleeping better.
I have more energy.
I am eating less- I feel genuinely hungry before most meals. In a good way.
I'm eating a much bigger variety of fruits and vegetables on a daily basis.
I have completely cut high fructose corn syrup, as well as other added sugars, completely out.
I have cut out grains.*
* I have been tested for gluten intolerance, and I essentially came out a gluten-lovin' chick. I cut these out not because I think they are bad for me, but because they tend to come with a lot of extra processing and sugars and crud. Also because I'm doing a low-moderate carb diet here. If/when I add them back in, it'll probably involve a lot of planning.
Anyway, I feel like I'm ready for more physically. (Slow more!) I'm applying for financial assistance with the YMCA and the JCC, both gyms I know very well and both gyms I enjoy. (And they both have swimming pools, a big thing for me!) I just feel like more vigorous exercise would suit me pretty well, physically and mentally, although I know that it's gonna be tough.
Yesterday I took my dog to the river, which was amazing and very strenuous. I had a big bag of picnic stuff, towels and water, and in the other hand I was managing my 65 lb, excited dog, so it was pretty demanding for my arms and shoulders- not to mention that my long-suffering sandals broke about a quarter-mile in to my roughly 2 mile hike. Thank goodness I brought my water shoes! But we had a blast, I got some sun and today I had a pleasant soreness in all my major muscle groups. I don't mind a little soreness- it just means that I'm doing things!
So, let's tally up the good so far:
I'm sleeping better.
I have more energy.
I am eating less- I feel genuinely hungry before most meals. In a good way.
I'm eating a much bigger variety of fruits and vegetables on a daily basis.
I have completely cut high fructose corn syrup, as well as other added sugars, completely out.
I have cut out grains.*
* I have been tested for gluten intolerance, and I essentially came out a gluten-lovin' chick. I cut these out not because I think they are bad for me, but because they tend to come with a lot of extra processing and sugars and crud. Also because I'm doing a low-moderate carb diet here. If/when I add them back in, it'll probably involve a lot of planning.
Anyway, I feel like I'm ready for more physically. (Slow more!) I'm applying for financial assistance with the YMCA and the JCC, both gyms I know very well and both gyms I enjoy. (And they both have swimming pools, a big thing for me!) I just feel like more vigorous exercise would suit me pretty well, physically and mentally, although I know that it's gonna be tough.
Yesterday I took my dog to the river, which was amazing and very strenuous. I had a big bag of picnic stuff, towels and water, and in the other hand I was managing my 65 lb, excited dog, so it was pretty demanding for my arms and shoulders- not to mention that my long-suffering sandals broke about a quarter-mile in to my roughly 2 mile hike. Thank goodness I brought my water shoes! But we had a blast, I got some sun and today I had a pleasant soreness in all my major muscle groups. I don't mind a little soreness- it just means that I'm doing things!
Monday, October 1, 2012
Dieting; or, being fat in a skinny world.
So, I'm not sure I'm really dieting. I'm not counting calories or carbs or grams of fat. I cut out sugar and grains, but other than that, I don't restrict what I eat particularly. I am trying to lose weight, but I can't say that I'm stressing about it the way I have with every other diet. I feel a million times better on this eating plan than I did on literally every other diet. And trust me, I have tried the diets!
The most "successful" diet was Atkins. I lost 70 pounds in three months and kept it off for ten years. (That puts me in the 5% of dieters that manage permanent weight loss, you'll note. And 70 lbs took me from "morbidly obese" to just plain "obese". It would take another 70 lbs to take me to "normal" BMI.) The trouble with Atkins was that I was miserable the entire time, irritable, cranky, craving and sick. I quit the diet because I started craving Twinkies. I hate Twinkies. I think they are foul.
Other diets I've tried, for various reasons: low fat, vegetarian, vegan, Weight Watchers, Atkins again and just plain calorie restriction. Vegan made me sick- I started having major digestive problems. Vegetarian didn't change anything health or weightwise. Calorie restriction left me hungry ALL. THE. TIME. I'm not saying hunger doesn't have a place in a healthy diet- but being hungry all the time is bad for the soul, because you start plotting to eat people! None of these budged my weight, which after the successful Atkins ranged between 225 and 235 very consistently.
Other things that didn't change my weight: cooking at home. eating out all the time. running 5 and 10Ks. weightlifting. walking between four and eight hours a day. lying in bed all day, every day.
Recently I gained 60 lbs in three months. I was very emotional about this weight gain, because I didn't understand it- I began gaining weight after stepping up my activity and starting to eat better. It turned out it was due to a medication I was taking.
Potentially due to the weight gain, I also developed severe headaches due to increased intracranial hypertension- that is, the pressure from spinal fluid began building up in my skull. That's why I'm trying to lose weight now- well, that and I'm pretty sure my body doesn't like being this weight. I expect that if I lose weight, I will probably lose it pretty quickly, as I did before. But who knows? I was pretty content at that weight, and I could learn to be content at this weight as well.
In any case, I applied what I learned about my body and nutrition to create my own diet, focusing on meat, beans, whole fruits and veggies, fermented dairy and nuts and seeds. It's pretty Paleoesque for the time being, although I do drink diet sodas and eat Splenda. I'm not relying solely on those, though- I do drink a lot of water and avoid sweets for the most part. I tried to cross losing weight and feeling healthy, and for now I'm pretty satisfied with the mix. I feel much, much better eating whole foods, and that's more important than weight loss. I'm also back to walking two or three miles a day, trying to build up the conditioning I lost earlier this year. I'll add in weightlifting and other exercise in the near future.
It's been nine days since I began on Saturday September 22nd, 2012, and I'm aiming to keep to this lifestyle till New Year's- then I will re-evaluate. But I'm feeling good!
The most "successful" diet was Atkins. I lost 70 pounds in three months and kept it off for ten years. (That puts me in the 5% of dieters that manage permanent weight loss, you'll note. And 70 lbs took me from "morbidly obese" to just plain "obese". It would take another 70 lbs to take me to "normal" BMI.) The trouble with Atkins was that I was miserable the entire time, irritable, cranky, craving and sick. I quit the diet because I started craving Twinkies. I hate Twinkies. I think they are foul.
Other diets I've tried, for various reasons: low fat, vegetarian, vegan, Weight Watchers, Atkins again and just plain calorie restriction. Vegan made me sick- I started having major digestive problems. Vegetarian didn't change anything health or weightwise. Calorie restriction left me hungry ALL. THE. TIME. I'm not saying hunger doesn't have a place in a healthy diet- but being hungry all the time is bad for the soul, because you start plotting to eat people! None of these budged my weight, which after the successful Atkins ranged between 225 and 235 very consistently.
Other things that didn't change my weight: cooking at home. eating out all the time. running 5 and 10Ks. weightlifting. walking between four and eight hours a day. lying in bed all day, every day.
Recently I gained 60 lbs in three months. I was very emotional about this weight gain, because I didn't understand it- I began gaining weight after stepping up my activity and starting to eat better. It turned out it was due to a medication I was taking.
Potentially due to the weight gain, I also developed severe headaches due to increased intracranial hypertension- that is, the pressure from spinal fluid began building up in my skull. That's why I'm trying to lose weight now- well, that and I'm pretty sure my body doesn't like being this weight. I expect that if I lose weight, I will probably lose it pretty quickly, as I did before. But who knows? I was pretty content at that weight, and I could learn to be content at this weight as well.
In any case, I applied what I learned about my body and nutrition to create my own diet, focusing on meat, beans, whole fruits and veggies, fermented dairy and nuts and seeds. It's pretty Paleoesque for the time being, although I do drink diet sodas and eat Splenda. I'm not relying solely on those, though- I do drink a lot of water and avoid sweets for the most part. I tried to cross losing weight and feeling healthy, and for now I'm pretty satisfied with the mix. I feel much, much better eating whole foods, and that's more important than weight loss. I'm also back to walking two or three miles a day, trying to build up the conditioning I lost earlier this year. I'll add in weightlifting and other exercise in the near future.
It's been nine days since I began on Saturday September 22nd, 2012, and I'm aiming to keep to this lifestyle till New Year's- then I will re-evaluate. But I'm feeling good!
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