I really am adopting a healthy lifestyle - which means, eating right and being fit are becoming a natural and normal part of me. Last month, I colored my calendar neon green on every day that I worked out - 19 days total - go me! For this month, I'm keeping the green for workouts and aiming to hit the gym at least 5 days per week NO MATTER WHAT. Oh the benefits of belonging to a 24 hour gym.
When I first started this challenge, I think I was attempting to change too many things at once. Matter of fact, I KNOW I was. Now, I'm attempting to tone it down a little. I've made the gym a habit, so now I'm throwing in my water as habit #2. Initially, I said a gallon of water a day. Couldn't track that PLUS the gym PLUS the cooking PLUS all the other stuff I was trying to do, so I'm goaling for 2 liters per day now. I have a 1 liter water bottle that I'll keep refilling and I've begun drinking water as soon as I wake up to help me accomplish the water goal.
As for weigh ins, I've been doing those consistently. Because I don't cook meat at home and normally only eat it when I go out, it seems that I'm developing a distaste for it- maybe because I don't eat itas much? Or maybe because I spend a large portion of my free time reading about all the horrible things they and their by-products do to my digestive system and overall weight loss goals. Either way, I'm excited that I'm developing an affinity for veggies. I hit the grocery store and the first place I go is to the produce aisle. I'm buying stuff I have no idea what to do with, but you can bet your bottom dollar that I'm googl-ing a recipe for it soon as I get home. I'm also definitely getting my money's worth out of my little $20 spice rack.
Oh and I forgot to mention - I lost weight over Christmas when I went to Chicago! I couldn't believe it! I'm sure it had a ton to do with me bringing my water bottle everywhere, keeping my baby carrots on hand and popping them after, before and during every MEAT splurge and oh yeah, can't forget that guest pass I got from Bally's. I only ended up going to Bally's one day, but I spent 2 hours in the gym that day, burned about 1000 calories according to the counters and then went stepping immediately after that. I guess it's true what they say - when you make more healthy choices than unhealthy, the numbers become your friend. I also noticed that according to the green marks on my calendar, the week I went home I worked out 4 days total - Thurs and Friday before I left, Monday at Bally's and Thursday soon as I got back. I'm almost like an addict - I'll hit the gym anytime and anyplace...I got home at 1:30am the other day b/c I was at my new club of choice.
Not sure when I'll post next, but I did want to pass along a few great sites that I'm reading almost daily.
blackgirlsguidetoweightloss.com -- I get tons of information about the right foods to eat and how the writer is personally doing in her quest to make her 150+ weight loss a permanent part of life. She has recipes, workouts and just overall great information on there.
debramoorhead.com -- I just found a calorie counting approach on this blog. it's somewhat dated, but it still works - basically using online calorie counters, you figure out the weight you want to weigh. the counter will spit the number of calories you need to eat in order to maintain that weight (for me, to maintain 145 lbs - which is what I'm shooting for - I need to eat around 1750 calories). this gave me an idea of where I'm going - I don't calorie count simply b/c I haven't gotten that ingrained with the details, but at least I know what I'm looking for in case what I'm doing stops working and I need another approach. currently, what's working for me is doing more of the healthy stuff (exercise, water, cooking, juicing) and less of the not so healthy stuff (eating out, decreasing meat and dairy).
In addition, I'm also finding that to keep me motivated, I STAY finding success stories. Women's Health magazine has them online and the 2 blogs above are also success stories of women who've lost the weight and kept it off. I guess it makes it real for me when I know I can read about someone who's accomplished what I'm striving toward - helps me know that "hey! i can do that too!"
So here's the #s:
LBS FAT% H2O% Muscle%
12/2 190.4 47.5 39.5 35
12/9 186.8 46.6 40.1 35.3
12/16 186.0 45.5 40.8 35.7
12/23 184.4 46.3 40.4 35.3
12/31 183.2 46.3 40.4 35.3
1/6 183.2 46.3 40.5 35.3
Oh yeah - it just hit me that for anyone trying to do what I do, you might want specifics lol. I'm eating oatmeal most every mornings for breakfast (my ex bf would be proud of me - he tried to get me to do that 10 yrs ago but I refused lol), no more than 60 mins of cardio 5times per week. Last month I was doing no more than 45 mins of cardio 4 to 5 times per week, but I'm stepping my game up. I fell off on tracking to a T the couch 2 5k plan, but i'm still doing intervals on the treadmill whenever I feel up to it and hitting the weights. I called myself working out with a fit friend the other day and I'm still in so much pain 2 days later that I'll probably start doing total body workouts with him 1 time per week and doing weights 2 other days besides that. Reason being, I read an article recently that mentioned rest being as much a factor in building muscle as weight lifting. And now that I think about it, I had the greatest results when I was working with a trainer in 09 3x per week on weights and doing cardio 5x per week. Only thing left is getting my eating together. Though I eat pretty well, I have a nagging feeling that without incorporating the meat, I'm not getting enough calories. I should be eating my weight in veggies to make up for it, but I really just don't feel like eating most of the time :( That could be why for the first time, my weight didn't move this past week. We'll see...I bought some protein powder *gasp!* so maybe that'll be my easy solution? I know...I hate processed foods - but I've got to figure out a way to get enough calories in my diet. I'll count it as a trial - there's no dairy (it's soy based - which isn't the best either) and it was $10 at wal....mart so we'll see.
More than anything else, what I'm finding out is that works for somebody else may or may NOT work for me. Though it's nice to communicate with others along the way, this really is an individual journey toward finding out what works best for your body, preferences and tastes. For example - I can bake just 6 cookies and only eat 2 at a time - that works for me. I can substitute white flour for a mixture of oat flour and whole wheat flour and white sugar for brown - that works for me. I can juice like crazy and eat a mainly vegan diet - that works for me. But then I also work IT. Trial and error baby - if it's gross the first time around, I sub something out the next time around and try to figure it out. Case in point - I vow to win this war against hummus - it was okay the first time I made it, but I really need a higher grade blender to make it creamy the way I like it. Soon, Betty Crocker aint gone have nothing on me!
