I had a long talk with my fiance last night and we've both sworn that we will *at least* cut out fast food from our dinners together. Both of us are total junk-food addicts and if one of us even slightly acts like we don't feel like eating healthy, the other one will just push it over the edge by suggesting fast food instead. We've agreed this is only serving to make us fat, and probably shorten our life spans. I wish I would have fallen in love with a personal trainer, hehehehe.
I suppose that making a true, whole-hearted effort is what I need to do... for some reason I just can't find that mindset within me. I seem to get stuck at that "its not fair" mentality every time.
This morning I was thinking to myself about how good I feel during the day, but by the time I get home from work in the evening, I'm pooped, don't feel like going to the gym, and just want to curl up on the couch and relax. I was thinking, I should write myself a letter that goes something like this:
Dear Evening Me,
This is you, begging you to remember how upset you are about your weight and health. This is you, begging you to remember how much you WANT to work out, how much you NEED to work out, and how you promised yourself this morning you'd do it when you got home. Do NOT listen to your current self telling you it's ok to sit on that couch! Get up, put your tennis shoes on, and go to the gym!
Love always,
Morning Me
I feel totally self-absorbed and like I need 24/7 motivational support or something stupid. I am very good at manipulating myself and "bargaining" with myself and conveniently forgetting what my resolves are.
I think I'm going to try to post more often here about myself, perhaps I will feel more accountable then.
Is it possible to either exercise at lunch time (though you may have no where to walk outside and it may take too much time to get to the gym and back to the office)? If not, you might try eating a healthy snack around 4:30pm or so and then going STRAIGHT TO THE GYM without going home first. Once home in your cozy surroundings, who in their right mind would feel like changing, going back out in the winter night, and torturing oneself on some boring machines. Perhaps try doing this 2 times per week and then go with your fiancee to exercise together on the weekends.
Mami - That's a great idea, and he and I have discussed doing just that. Not sure why we haven't implemented it. We live together, so he'd be pretty upset if I went to the gym without him. But he gets off of work around the time that I do, so I could just pick him up (he takes the bus to/from work) and then drive us straight to the gym.
I'll just have to sit down and think of some good afternoon snacks to pack with me in the morning. I get tired of apples and bananas... and I have to avoid hitting up the Evil Vending Machine that's 30 feet from my desk.
Another tip is to have supper almost ready before you go to work. Get those chicken breasts out of the freezer, grab a bagged salad.
You don't need to hurry home from work because supper will only take a few minutes.
I don't LIKE going to the gym, but doing it really helps. I find if I make a commitment to myself, it's easier. I just tell myself I have to go.
I also found I couldn't go to the gym AND cook dinner the same night. Sundays I cook up some kind of food with multiple servings (e.g, red beans and rice, chili, etc). Then after the gym all I have to do is heat and eat!
As for PM snacks: a small handful of nuts, bring peanut butter for the apple/banana, cottage cheese, a small slice of cheese and maybe a couple of crackers, a healthy granola bar, veggies and hummus.... that's a start on ideas, anyway.
I also found I couldn't go to the gym AND cook dinner the same night. Sundays I cook up some kind of food with multiple servings (e.g, red beans and rice, chili, etc). Then after the gym all I have to do is heat and eat!
This is brilliant, I do this too! I've found having a Sunday ritual is really helping me...I go the the gym in the morning then switch my playlist over on my Ipod to something relaxing and hit the grocery store and buy lots of veggies and fruits and lean means (I keep my pantry stocked with whole grain staples so I don't have to buy all the time) then when I get home I measure and break everything into portions and cook some meals for the week to take to work and heat for dinner. This is allowing me to get to the gym in the evenings a couple of days a week...which I'll only do if I drive straight there and I put my gym bag in the car in the mornings and make no excuses for not going. This is also saving me a TON of money.
I've gained 30 pounds in the past year since I started working a desk job...and most of what I have to thank for that was takeout and fast food. Breakfast most days would be a big fat egg and cheese English muffin sandwich from the cafe and a full fat latte...or dunkin donuts bagel and cream cheese and a large coffee with cream and sugar....We would eat out for lunch every single day....chili cheese dip, burritos, burgers, pizza....there were no veggies or fruits in my diet. Then when we would have evening events it would be first stop bar for drinks and noshes before the shows, then out again after at a fully catered party! I was probably eating close to 4000 calories a day on some days, about 3000 on others. My first step was cutting ALL of this out. I no longer eat any office takeout, I deal with the torture of the good smelling Chinese food that my boss is still plowing back, or the Macdonald's food at the train station when I'm on my evening commute. I'm working on self control at the parties and am only going to the ones that I'm required to make an appearance at.
Just now by not only watching my calories but also paying very close attention to where they are coming from I am already feeling better. I'm sleeping better, have more energy, make sure I get all my water and nutrients and it makes a HUGE difference. And as an extra bonus I'm losing weight and a nice steady pace, about 2-3 pounds a week, but more importantly my body is feeling cleaner overall.
I also agree with small changes like switching to regular or better yet multigrain cheerios....watching the serving sizes.....switching to 1% or skim milk etc.
I agree that I don't think you have a metabolism problem. If you are losing 1 or 2 pounds a week, your body is doing what it's supposed to be doing. If you want really fast weight loss, amputation is about the only thing I can think of that really works for that. But I wouldn't recommend it.
something that helps me feel "motivated" is learning more about nutrition. Sometimes its hard to just eat healthy food unless you know what the junk does to your body, and conversly what the healthier options do for you. A great book i'm reading is Superfoods RX..cant remember the auther, but he talks alot about nutrition (and theres alot of healthy foods that taste great, you just need to know what they are!)
I agree that I don't think you have a metabolism problem. If you are losing 1 or 2 pounds a week, your body is doing what it's supposed to be doing. If you want really fast weight loss, amputation is about the only thing I can think of that really works for that. But I wouldn't recommend it.
I'm not sure if this was directed at me, but I've never lost 1-2 pounds a week. I lost 1-2 pounds in the entire 2-3 months that I was counting calories and exercising. When I would eat like a pig and never exercise, I'd maintain. It was like my body was begging me to just stay at this weight.
Unfortunately now, I'm eating poorly, but still exercising a bit, and I'm gaining weight like crazy. If I hadn't just started TOM, I'd think I was pregnant or something. I guess it's just me getting old.
I'd suggest making some meals ahead of time during a time that you two may have with more energy (say in the morning, or on the weekend?) also, I'm not sure how your pizzas are cut, but here, 4 slices is half a pizza! Which is quite a bit, honestly. Try drinking a lot of ice-cold water and impliment healthy snacks throughout the day (like Yofurt, or the 100 calorie snacks they sell, a glass of milk, etc.). The ice-water will spike your metabolism as well, causing your body to work harder to warm it up. Be vigilant in your workouts, and in your eating/tracking what you eat. Just keep going and don't give up. Don't get discouraged by comparing yourself with others... those girls may be your weight, but it's not because they're on their way to a healthier, sexier body, they're on an unhealthy road, hon, just passing you by on the way. I have a problem trying not to compare myself with girls who are my weight or lighter and wondering if I'm ever going to get there. I've come a long way, but I want it to happen sooner than later. lol I also like the convenience of fast food and I can't stand restrictive or "stifling" diets, I will binge so fast it's not funny. So I just decided to re-educate myself about healthy foods (what actually is and isn't) and relearned how to shop and what to cook. I'm still learning and I won't freak out about it, but I have to eat well and take care of my family and myself. We're worth it. If you really want this, you'll make it work for you. You can do it and we're here to help!
One a side-note: during the months you were tracking food and excercising, was your body (overall look) improving? You may have been gaining muscle and losing fat, but not showing it on the scales...
I so agree with Nelie, where are your veggies, fruit and whole grains?
I lose very slowly but I didn't start to lose until I switched to whole grains, they keep me fuller longer so I eat less carbs.
I ate more fruit. I upped my veggies to 5 a day.
If your going to have pizza make a homemade healthier one and only 1-2 pieces. Have a salad first.
Good luck, you can do this. It takes lots of time and patience. It also takes experimenting to find what works best for you to lose weight. I can eat good 6 days a week and if I eat off track for a day, I have blown my weight loss for the week.
It's true that metabolism can slow down as we get older, but I bet you are not all that old!
Some years ago there was the "set point" theory, which said that our bodies have certain weight points where it's hard to go down once we get there. I don't know whether this was ever proven.
Whether your metabolism has slowed down or not, the question is, how are you going to deal with it? I think your plan is good--more exercise, better snacks--and I LOVED your letter to yourself.
Someone here on 3fatchicks has a great saying at the end of her messages: "Failure is giving up what you want most for what you want now."
Good luck! And by the way, I did have that sudden weight loss--I got back on my plan, and dropped from 184 to 181 in a day. (But that's no doubt mostly water weight.)
Hey SmartButt -
you've gotten some great advice here. The only thing I can think to add is to say that unless I write it all down & per-fect my portion size control, I will gain weight. I have found that I ALWAYS eat more than I think I do.
FitDay is the bomb - the most helpful computer tool for a dieter, IMHO. For about a week, I wrote down every morsel that went into my mouth. THEN I entered each day on FitDay. I was SHOCKED to see that I wasn't eating the 1200 or so calories I THOUGHT I was eating.... nope.... it was more in the 1800 range! No wonder I wasn't losing any weight, & I was an exercising freak.
So maybe that's the culprit. Perhaps you are eating more than you think you are eating. Take a closer look; I bet you'll be able to start losing more & lose it faster once you get your calories under control.
If you think your metabolism is too slow, read up on "insulin resistance". Excess insulin in the blood stream makes it very difficult to access fat. If you've been bashing your system with easy carbs for a long time, you may have well built up a resistance to the amount of insulin your body has to produce to deal with the rise in blood sugar.
And it's only a hop, skip and a jump into full blown diabetes from there, but some of the disasterous health consequences of diabetes can start years before the blood sugar starts showing up as abnormal. Don't let it happen!
If you think your metabolism is too slow, read up on "insulin resistance". Excess insulin in the blood stream makes it very difficult to access fat. If you've been bashing your system with easy carbs for a long time, you may have well built up a resistance to the amount of insulin your body has to produce to deal with the rise in blood sugar.
And it's only a hop, skip and a jump into full blown diabetes from there, but some of the disasterous health consequences of diabetes can start years before the blood sugar starts showing up as abnormal. Don't let it happen!
you know...know that you mention it, I have been eating more bloodsugar friendky for the past couple years and this is the best I have ever done with weight loss. I think I WAS I.R. before and now I am not.
