For the past 8 years I have been overweight and probably for the past 5 years I have been obese. I have never understood why I'm fat, I just thought it was my metabolism or something like that.
Today I actually started looking at the calories at the foods I have been eating. Observe my favorite meal at Chili's (I'm not going to state the actual food because I know when I read other people talk about food on here I get hungry):
Appetizer: 1210 calories
Main Meal: 1880 calories
Dessert: 1270 calories
Grand Total: 4360 calories!!!!
So I was eating over 2 days worth of calories in one meal? I cried when I read that because now I KNOW why I am fat and I know that it is something that I can control. I know that I have to commit to writing down EVERYTHING that I eat and if I do end up in a restaurant like that, I have to make smarter choices.
Ain't self-discovery a tough teacher?! I didn't realize how much I was eating until I wrote it all down as well. And then I got really mad at the restaurants and food manufacturers for leading me down this path. Have you seen Supersize Me? My 11-year-old won't eat French fries any more after watching that. And I'm looking forward to watching Food, Inc. too.
I started making changes in just what I was eating as well as tracking my calories and lost nearly 50 lbs. just by doing that. I don't go out to any restaurants more than once a month now. I don't drink soda or juice. I don't drink alcohol any longer because it leads me to uninhibited eating! I drink water or herbal iced tea, unsweetened. I cut out refined carbohydrates and eliminated as much processed food as I could from my diet. I don't eat butter any more, and I didn't replace it with margarine or other spreads.
I still have a long way to go. I still take in a lot of calories per day, but I do keep it under 2200 calories a day. My next effort is to eliminate excess fats and salt. I tend to use too much olive oil when I cook. I have learned to enjoy salads and steamed veggies with just lemon juice. I cut my breakfast down to two eggs, poached. I'm eating more dry beans instead of meat. The tough one is the tinned sardines that I love. They're packed in olive oil! It's my one big vice. Well, I love avocados too, and I have a tough time only eating a portion of one. My goal is to get down to a consistent 1800 calories a day.
I have set a big goal for myself, something I've always wanted to do. I want to learn to sail, and I want to crew on a ship through the Mediterranean some day. I want to do it with confidence, and I want that more than I want a baked potato with butter and sour cream, or a grilled cheese sandwich or a chimichanga. That goal is a bigger deal to me, so it helps me to stay on track, most of the time. Believe me, I've had more than my share of falling overboard into the buffet (I don't do those any more either).
You took a big, important step, Jade. Facing yourself in honesty is very brave. I'm proud of you!
Thank you for your words of encouragement. I love reading all the posts because in daily life you are made to believe that once you are overweight, it is impossible to lose the weight. Visiting this website daily (who am I kidding, I am on here several times per day!) has made me excited to join all of you on the road to a healthier body.
I think that educating ourselves about the amount of calories we consume is the most important thing that we can do. It is so easy to add in an extra 2 or 3 thousand calories, even when trying to eat healthily. I just can not "intuitively" eat.
I am sure that you will have your calories under control in short order.
Hey--congratulations on getting honest with yourself. I had that revelation too. I first accepted I had become obese--not fat, obese. I decided to own that realization--not 2nd guess my doctor or the BMI chart--or the medical community at large. By doing that, I was able to truly take control and realize I had made myself obese and likewise, I could make myself healthy.
There are some amazing choices out there in way of foods. Many ideas are here @ 3FC--not to mention the support you can get. If you will let yourself go on a food adventure, I do not think you will disappointed in what you will find ahead. So many things can satiate you, satisfy you and leave you feeling content--all the while taking your health to new levels.
You absolutely CAN do this. Absolutely, 100% and with no doubt.
Reality bites, doesn't it? I was drinking most my excess calories in the form of alcohol, talk about useless calories.
Without a doubt tracking what one eats, and calculating calories is the way to see how we fuel ourselves.
I've become quite obsessive (in a good way to me) about tracking calories. The more accurately I track, the more I can feel relaxed when I can't track accurately (like if I go out and eat.)
I love weighing all my food in grams now. It's so much easier than measuring cups and such.
I had the exact same realization today while just playing with the numbers. I am losing an average of 2.4 lbs a week, that is 8400 calories by my math. I started thinking, how did I consume an extra 8400 calories a week?? That is an extra 1200 calories a day, there is no way I was eating enough for two.
BUT, I wrote down the stuff that I have stopped doing completely:
Sitting down with a bag of Doritos (I was eating over a bag a week by myself)
Quizno's on Saturday
Dinner roll and small dessert on my lunch tray at work
A pack of poptarts an average of three times a week
Just adding this stuff up was about 5400 calories a week. I am sure the other 3000 calories has easily been cut out just tweaking the stuff I eat at home, portion sizes and healthier choices.
I was always scared to try and lose weight because I couldn't see how to cut 7000 calories a week out of my diet to lose 2 lbs a week. I just didn't see where 1000 calories a day would come from.
Man, I hope I don't jinx myself by saying this has been easier than expected. I KNOW I will have plateaus and I KNOW the loss will slow down as I get closer. (I am writing this for myself for when I get frustrated down the line).
But I have not been hungry, have not been eating cardboard, I am just thinking and making better choices.
I have wasted 20 years being overweight, well, not wasted, but I have not been at 100% of my potential.
I have been in a state of denial!!!
