Living and learning
Had a pretty good day today, but found myself out with nothing to eat. I opted for Subway, and instead of my usual veggie, decided to have a tuna sandwich with no cheese. I was thinking it would offer more protein, and I was going to try to eat some fish today anyway. When I came home and looked up the calorie count - 530 & 30 g of fat!! - I realized I could have ordered a FOOT-LONG veggie and had less calories and almost as much protein. Shocking. And it means that my fat percentage is way high today.
I’ve been thinking more about how sedentary my life is in general now. I exercise more than I ever have before, but my life - other than the ~1hour/day of “exercising” - is pretty sedentary.
Dilemma of the Day: How to integrate a lot more movement into my regular life? Some ideas:
- Start wearing a pedometer and walk to wherever I can (hopefully this will improve with a new living situation)
- Go back to my old rule of never *sitting* and watching TV. Have to be doing some kind of exercises - stretching, situps, pushups, weights…
- Hmmm… I can’t think of anything else in my current situation…
The Day in Numbers: Didn’t weigh. Exercise =~300 cal.
| Grams | Calories | %-Cals | ||
| Calories |
1,307
|
|||
| Fat |
64.6
|
566
|
43
|
% |
| Saturated |
11.9
|
105
|
8
|
% |
| Polyunsaturated |
14.9
|
127
|
10
|
% |
| Monounsaturated |
11.0
|
94
|
7
|
% |
| Carbohydrate |
114.1
|
453
|
34
|
% |
| Dietary Fiber |
28.3
|
|||
| Protein |
77.5
|
299
|
23
|
% |
| Alcohol |
0.0
|
0
|
0
|
% |
The Beach was the right choice for now
Doing infinitely better with the binge-y late night grazing. Eating so much better now that I am doing South Beach again. Funny that it took me so long to click into this mode again. I had been thinking about it forever. In November 2008 I did a very clean Phase 1 and didn’t lose anything so I got discouraged and switched to calorie-counting. Have had mixed results with that - it seemed to work very slowly - WHEN I actually logged everything - but I have a suspicion that it is more about *what* I eat than *how much*. Anyway, my ideal is really South Beach, focusing on SuperFoods and maybe someday I can ditch the calorie counting, if/when I trust myself to make good choices…
I’m not really sure what phase I’m doing. Probably what they call a 1.5. Definitely not a clean Phase 1, as I had sugar-free pudding (didn’t realize it wasn’t on the Phase 1 list; I thought it was a good way to get in more milk). Oh and 1/2 cup whole grain rice yesterday. And a Kashi protein & fiber bar today. Oh and oranges every day. So maybe I’m already in Phase 2?
Yesterday I was hungry late night (had a HUGE lunch at a Chinese buffet; ate only veggies and tofu - fried 
- and then couldn’t eat again till much, much later). Didn’t go to the gym, either because of belly hurting from lunch …. anyway, I was feeling munchy and so I had mozzarella cheese chips and veggie pepperoni. Delish and high protein!
Today I haven’t gotten enough calories… went to the gym for a yoga class, though! Need to eat more beans, berries, cruciferous veggies, fish, soy… find a way to work this in tomorrow.
The Day in Numbers: Weight = still 146.2. Exercise = ~ 150 cal? (1 hr yoga)
| Grams | Calories | %-Cals | ||
| Calories |
1,063
|
|||
| Fat |
31.0
|
267
|
25
|
% |
| Saturated |
9.5
|
83
|
8
|
% |
| Polyunsaturated |
5.0
|
42
|
4
|
% |
| Monounsaturated |
10.7
|
90
|
8
|
% |
| Carbohydrate |
123.7
|
474
|
44
|
% |
| Dietary Fiber |
24.9
|
|||
| Protein |
89.8
|
345
|
32
|
% |
| Alcohol |
0.0
|
0
|
0
|
% |
.
The Day in Numbers (Monday, Feb 1): Didn’t weigh. No exercise
| Calories |
1,408
|
|||
| Fat |
50.3
|
427
|
30
|
% |
| Saturated |
9.2
|
79
|
6
|
% |
| Polyunsaturated |
21.7
|
182
|
13
|
% |
| Monounsaturated |
12.5
|
106
|
8
|
% |
| Carbohydrate |
150.1
|
592
|
42
|
% |
| Dietary Fiber |
27.0
|
|||
| Protein |
104.3
|
390
|
28
|
% |
| Alcohol |
0.0
|
0
|
0
|
% |
Today was a GREAT day!
Well, I spent most of the day thinking about food and exercising (for 1 hour) but I feel great. Eating with South Beach principles again. Makes me get lots more veggies and think twice about reaching for the bread (it’s whole wheat, but still…). I only ate ~1000 calories today and I am not hungry at all and do not feel compelled to graze through the pretzels and cake tonight. Yay!
Ran 5K tonight, using C25K, take 2 again. I think it’s the 4th time through Week 1 intervals (1.5 min and 1 min) at the higher speed (4.0/6.0). Not any easier yet! Then jogged for almost another mile at 4.5 mph. One-minute sprint at 7.0! Time of 42:10, so a new personal best, hehe!
Didn’t make my hour/day goal. Oh well. Just ramp it up for February if possible.
That’s it. I have to go shopping tomorrow to make lots more stuff to have on hand. I am happy with my decision to go back to South Beach for now! No dilemmas currently. At least not about diet and exercise 
The Day in Numbers: Didn’t weigh. Exercise ~300 cal. The calorie total below is actually 140 cal less than this but I have to include that dang Skinny Cow that I ate after midnight last night somewhere!
|
Dang social life!
Went to a last-minute dinner party. Which means that I: 1) didn’t exercise (left it for later in the day, then had to shower and get ready to go out) and 2) ate stuff I would have preferred not to have. Oh well. I didn’t eat much before the dinner and I estimated to the best of my ability. No bread, only 1 glass of wine, 1 small piece of chocolate. Actually pretty good except for the alfredo sauce!
Dilemma of the Day: How can I maintain a social life and a strict fitness routine? I already have a lot of ideas about this. The problem is more about the *unplanned* social events.
- I could make more effort to work out earlier!
- I could eat more before going out so I’m not inclined to eat so much out.
- I could bring things to eat that are healthy for me.
- I could plan more “healthy” outings: with some activity, eating somewhere that has healthy food.
The Day in Numbers: Didn’t weigh. Exercise = ended up being 0. Dinner party…
| Grams | Calories | %-Cals | ||
| Calories |
1,478
|
|||
| Fat |
74.9
|
648
|
43
|
% |
| Saturated |
30.2
|
264
|
18
|
% |
| Polyunsaturated |
8.1
|
69
|
5
|
% |
| Monounsaturated |
31.5
|
271
|
18
|
% |
| Carbohydrate |
119.6
|
478
|
32
|
% |
| Dietary Fiber |
27.4
|
|||
| Protein |
66.5
|
265
|
18
|
% |
| Alcohol |
15.4
|
107
|
7
|
% |
Back on the Beach!
I’ve been thinking about my recently wacky diet. I try to incorporate SuperFoods as much as possible. Then I go and ruin everything with out-of-control carby crappy junk food. Two days ago was fine, but not enough calories, until ~ 11pm. Came home and ate like 1000 calories! Ick… anyway, it seems that I need more structure; counting calories and incorporating SuperFoods is not cutting it. Well, I suppose it could, and it has in the past, but for now I think I need my old no sugar/refined carbs/saturated fat rule. We’ll see how it goes. I joined a South Beach challenge that goes through April 4. I did well at one time on SB. I already eat basically SB, EXCEPT for the binges… I estimated I will lose 4.5 lbs in those 9 weeks. I HOPE!! Pretty pathetic.
Re: exercise. I am NOT going to make my hour a day goal (barring an unplanned 5-hour hike in the next few days). Oh well. I still did better than I ever have before in my life! Today I ran/walked C25K W1D1 @ 4.0/6.0 then finished the 5K in 43:10. Working on increasing my speed and endurance. Going to go through C25K at the higher speed for now. It’s going to take a long, long time but that’s OK. I enjoy the intervals. I could probably do Week 1 for months as it is pretty challenging as it is… Continuing with strength training 2-3x/week. Push-ups (modified) 30 every night, trying to work up to a SINGLE real one.
Today I just figured out that if I ate a Boca burger and a slice of double fiber toast I would have 1460 cal, 21% protein and 33 g fiber. But I just can’t do it. I’m not hungry and it’s already midnight. Tomorrow is another day to eat well…
The Day in Numbers (Fri Jan 29). Didn’t weigh; ~ 300 cal activity.
| Grams | Calories | %-Cals | ||
| Calories |
1,290
|
|||
| Fat |
48.0
|
426
|
32
|
% |
| Saturated |
20.3
|
180
|
14
|
% |
| Polyunsaturated |
6.5
|
57
|
4
|
% |
| Monounsaturated |
16.5
|
147
|
11
|
% |
| Carbohydrate |
164.9
|
655
|
50
|
% |
| Dietary Fiber |
22.0
|
|||
| Protein |
60.4
|
236
|
18
|
% |
| Alcohol |
0.0
|
0
|
0
|
% |
.
The Day in Numbers (Thur Jan 28) Didn’t weigh. ~200 cal activity.
| Grams | Calories | %-Cals | ||
| Calories |
1,340
|
|||
| Fat |
32.6
|
282
|
21
|
% |
| Saturated |
11.3
|
100
|
7
|
% |
| Polyunsaturated |
9.7
|
82
|
6
|
% |
| Monounsaturated |
5.3
|
45
|
3
|
% |
| Carbohydrate |
233.1
|
898
|
65
|
% |
| Dietary Fiber |
33.1
|
|||
| Protein |
49.6
|
192
|
14
|
% |
| Alcohol |
0.0
|
0
|
0
|
.
The Day in Numbers (Wed, Jan 27) Didn’t weigh. ~325 cal activity.
| Grams | Calories | %-Cals | ||
| Calories |
1,500
|
|||
| Fat |
62.9
|
547
|
36
|
% |
| Saturated |
20.2
|
176
|
12
|
% |
| Polyunsaturated |
13.5
|
116
|
8
|
% |
| Monounsaturated |
20.2
|
176
|
12
|
% |
| Carbohydrate |
207.3
|
807
|
53
|
% |
| Dietary Fiber |
21.8
|
|||
| Protein |
43.2
|
161
|
11
|
% |
| Alcohol |
0.0
|
0
|
0
|
% |
Good news and bad news
Good news:
- My weight is at a 2010 low. Almost down to my pre-holiday weight.
- Went to yoga class.
- Calories were OK, as was fiber.
Bad news:
- I am way behind on my “hour of exercise a day” plan. I realize it’s a *year-long* plan and I’ll try to make up for lost time in warmer weather, but STILL. It was also a January Exercise goal and unless I do some 2- or 3-hour long walks this next week, it’s not going to happen.
- I missed my run. If I don’t go *before* the yoga class, it apparently doesn’t happen, ’cause then I eat and then it’s too late to run.
- My calories were a mixture of SuperFoods and carby CRAP. Feeling really binge-y. And not fighting it off well. Actually, I am not having much of any one thing, just grazing my way through all of the bad stuff around me - cake, pretzels, tortilla chips, milk chocolate. Ick.
The Day in Numbers: Weight = 146. 8.
| Grams | Calories | %-Cals | ||
| Calories |
1,405
|
|||
| Fat |
43.9
|
387
|
27
|
% |
| Saturated |
11.6
|
102
|
7
|
% |
| Polyunsaturated |
7.4
|
65
|
5
|
% |
| Monounsaturated |
11.8
|
103
|
7
|
% |
| Carbohydrate |
207.4
|
818
|
57
|
% |
| Dietary Fiber |
34.8
|
|||
| Protein |
59.8
|
231
|
16
|
% |
| Alcohol |
0.0
|
0
|
0
|
% |
Back from a discouraging slump
Been feeling really discouraged about my progress. Or lack thereof. No weight lost, no inches lost, no looser clothing. Once again, I am faced with the option to eat all I want and do nothing and be 4 lbs heavier OR maniacally track everything I consume and plan out an hour a day of exercise (most of it pretty intense, but sometimes walking) and be 4 lbs less. Hmph. I do think I look a tiny bit better, like more toned, but really, there have been no changes in my measurements. Luckily I have my blog that nobody reads so I can complain to the universe without bothering the successful dieters and exercisers on 3fc.
Back on track as of yesterday. Went to the gym and did C25K W1D1 at 6.0 mph running and 4.0 mph walking. It’s going to be a long, long journey to get me to running a mile (or three) at 6 mph. But this gives me somewhere to start.
I was mentally tracking calories even when I wasn’t logging into FitDay - but there is NO COMPARISON to how much better I do when really tracking vs. mentally tracking (if I go and log in the “mental calories”)! Also, I have this ability to go completely overboard when I’m not tracking.
For the days that I did track but didn’t enter in the blog, they are not terribly healthy days, but calorie-wise OK. Jan 19: 1,427. Jan 20: 1,357. Jan 21: 1,047 calories (with 47 grams of fiber! Crazy…). Jan 22: Didn’t track; didn’t eat much all day then had 0.5 L beer and carby, greasy German food for dinner. I have no idea how to estimate that, so I’ll say 3,000? 1,000,000? I am vowing to keep better track; the rest of my days are below.
The Day in Numbers: weight = 147.4 Activity ~ 300 cal.
| Grams | Calories | %-Cals | ||
| Calories |
1,458
|
|||
| Fat |
44.8
|
391
|
26
|
% |
| Saturated |
10.9
|
97
|
6
|
% |
| Polyunsaturated |
14.2
|
122
|
8
|
% |
| Monounsaturated |
13.6
|
117
|
8
|
% |
| Carbohydrate |
195.4
|
770
|
51
|
% |
| Dietary Fiber |
40.4
|
|||
| Protein |
88.4
|
346
|
23
|
% |
| Alcohol |
0.0
|
0
|
0
|
% |
-
The Day in Numbers (Sun, Jan 24): Activity ~250 cal. (Back on track; a SuperFoods day; 12/14 of the basics + 4 of the extras; the only slip-ups were 1 serving of plain tortilla chips and 52g of homemade white bread… mmm…)
| Grams | Calories | %-Cals | ||
| Calories |
1,362
|
|||
| Fat |
43.9
|
379
|
28
|
% |
| Saturated |
5.8
|
50
|
4
|
% |
| Polyunsaturated |
15.6
|
134
|
10
|
% |
| Monounsaturated |
15.4
|
133
|
10
|
% |
| Carbohydrate |
173.6
|
683
|
50
|
% |
| Dietary Fiber |
34.2
|
|||
| Protein |
81.2
|
310
|
23
|
% |
| Alcohol |
0.0
|
0
|
0
|
% |
-
The Day in Numbers (Sat, Jan 23) (a NOT “On Plan” day - 800 calories of flour tortillas and milk chocolate!).
| Grams | Calories | %-Cals | ||
| Calories |
1,496
|
|||
| Fat |
41.1
|
363
|
23
|
% |
| Saturated |
15.3
|
135
|
9
|
% |
| Polyunsaturated |
6.7
|
59
|
4
|
% |
| Monounsaturated |
14.4
|
126
|
8
|
% |
| Carbohydrate |
239.9
|
961
|
62
|
% |
| Dietary Fiber |
27.8
|
|||
| Protein |
56.7
|
225
|
15
|
% |
| Alcohol |
0.0
|
0
|
0
|
% |
Big fat problem
Did NOT have a good run. Side stitches. Only lasted 7 minutes. But got back on and walked inclines for a total of 45 minutes… which is good, that is what I planned to do on my “non-run” days. I’ll try running again tomorrow. Have to eat breakfast so I can run in the afternoon … came home and did 15 more minutes of exercise, so got my hour in. Yay.
Diet was a hodge podge. Still not planning well. Made pad thai but didn’t include enough veggies, oh well. It was high in protein. TOO MUCH FAT.
Dilemma of the Day: Maybe I need to focus on a lower fat diet?
The Day in Numbers: (didn’t weigh). Activity, ~ 250 cal.
| Grams | Calories | %-Cals | ||
| Calories |
1,429
|
|||
| Fat |
57.1
|
500
|
35 %
|
|
| Saturated |
15.5
|
137
|
10 %
|
|
| Polyunsaturated |
15.3
|
132
|
9 %
|
|
| Monounsaturated |
14.0
|
121
|
8 %
|
|
| Carbohydrate |
159.7
|
637
|
44 %
|
|
| Dietary Fiber |
18.5
|
|||
| Protein |
75.0
|
300
|
21 %
|
|
| Alcohol |
0.0
|
0
|
0 %
|
Get it together, Emma!
I hr exercise (ST class). DIDN’T go on the walk I planned. Am behind on my running since I blew it last night. NOT planning meals well (STILL) - went to my class with only a Kashi protein & fiber bar, coffee and tea in me (<200 cals)…
Overall, not doing well. Avoiding some life issues and majorly discouraged by my weight. Oh well, what else is new?
Dilemma of the Day: How to get my emotions under control and be a more functional person? (re: diet, fitness, career, social life, ETC)? I need to spend some dedicated time thinking about things tomorrow.
Some ideas:
- Get up earlier. Eat a good, high-protein breakfast. Drink black tea instead of coffee?
- Go to morning yoga class?
- Spend 1 hour planning diet & exercise for the day….
- Eat some dang veggies already. Make some soup and go to the store so it’s easy.
- WALK to natural foods store for Greek yogurt, veggie protein sources, coconut milk?
- Write the people I should write. Go through my to-do list. Deal with the life issues that are dragging me down.
- Run. What is my plan? Total of 3.1 miles. 30′ straight, then intervals?
The Day in Numbers: weight 148.2. Danger, danger! Wrong direction! Activity ~300 cals.
|
Bad news = bad choices
Monday was a good day, despite beginning with a trip to a Chinese buffet.
Tuesday not so great. First I found out my weight was UP 0.8. I know, not that much but STILL. So discouraging. Didn’t run before yoga as my eating schedule was off. HARD yoga class, yay! Planned to run later in the evening. Then later I got some kinda bad news and kinda got really really sad. Didn’t run and didn’t have my planned Greek yogurt on hand so instead of that and an orange, I went for pretzels (only 1 serving!) and 1 beer. Oh, and a “light” ice cream sandwich (which was YUK but it was irrational eating) for 180 cal, but it was after midnight so I am counting it against Wednesday’s calories. Which all means that my ratios were not great and fiber too low, but calories fine.
Dilemma of the Day: How to stay on track when I don’t feel like it? In other words, how to not let my emotions derail me?
The Day in Numbers: Weight 148.0 Activity ~150 cal (no idea how many calories a hard yoga class burns. This is was FitDay says for 1 hour of Hatha yoga…)
| Grams | Calories | %-Cals | ||
| Calories |
1,429
|
|||
| Fat |
40.4
|
353
|
24
|
% |
| Saturated |
8.4
|
74
|
5
|
% |
| Polyunsaturated |
4.7
|
40
|
3
|
% |
| Monounsaturated |
9.9
|
83
|
6
|
% |
| Carbohydrate |
193.0
|
766
|
52
|
% |
| Dietary Fiber |
20.6
|
|||
| Protein |
68.8
|
271
|
18
|
% |
| Alcohol |
14.0
|
97
|
7
|
% |
The Day in Numbers (Mon, Jan 11) : Didn’t check weight. Activity ~ 300 cals.
| Grams | Calories | %-Cals | ||
| Calories |
1,244
|
|||
| Fat |
43.2
|
373
|
30
|
% |
| Saturated |
10.7
|
94
|
8
|
% |
| Polyunsaturated |
14.9
|
127
|
10
|
% |
| Monounsaturated |
11.5
|
99
|
8
|
% |
| Carbohydrate |
147.5
|
578
|
47
|
% |
| Dietary Fiber |
29.2
|
|||
| Protein |
73.3
|
276
|
22
|
% |
| Alcohol |
0.0
|
0
|
0
|
% |
| M | T | W | T | F | S | S |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| « Feb | ||||||
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | ||
| 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 |
| 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 |
| 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 |
| 27 | 28 | 29 | ||||
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