tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37876067396434513352024-03-12T20:52:41.313-07:00Paring Down the FatThis is me, walking off my pounds...BigBootyJudyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09805605472336049412noreply@blogger.comBlogger215125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3787606739643451335.post-11591033063169497322011-02-28T20:13:00.000-08:002011-02-28T20:16:03.161-08:00Bouncing BallI'm like a bouncing ball with all these weight loss efforts that start off good and then quickly fizz out. Even almost immediately after they are started. <br /><br />The no calorie counting wasn't working, as evidenced by the scale this morning. <br /><br />So, I'm back to using the BodyBugg and tracking my calories. <br /><br />Didn't get to the gym this morning, but I did get on the treadmill for 45 minutes, with 20 of those minutes being spent jogging. I don't know how much I burned, but better than nothing. I got a good sweat out of it, at any rate.<br /><br />Calories eaten for the day: 1446<br /><br />That includes three meals and two snacks. Got my water in, too.BigBootyJudyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09805605472336049412noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3787606739643451335.post-8795634117225544832011-02-22T14:35:00.000-08:002011-02-22T15:32:09.062-08:00New GoalTrying to get myself back into the habit of blogging. Although I've tried to "keep my head in the game" of losing weight, I've decided to give calorie counting a break. Hubby is currently using my BodyBugg and I've stopped using the SparkPeople website to track foods I've eaten and exercises I've done. I've decided to just focus on eating healthily and getting some form of exercise every day.<br /><br />However, although this is working out okay, I want to give myself some clear goals to keep my motivation up. I've always enjoyed tracking my workouts and SparkPeople was good for this as far as getting points for minutes spent exercising and tracking fitness goals. So, I've decided I want to walk/run 500 miles this year. So by December 31st of this year, I will have walked or run 500 miles. This is in addition to my workout classes at the gym, which I'm supposed to be attending four days a week (Monday, Wednesday and Friday are aerobics and Thursday is Pilates). So I don't want to over-commit. To do 500 miles by the end of the year roughly calculates to 11.1 miles per week. That should be totally doable. Also, I want to try my 100 days of exercise again. I haven't attempted it in months and last time I made it to 50+ days. I can do this! <br /><br />I am going to revise the 100 days of exercise, though. I'm going to require only 10 minutes of exercise each day, minimum, rather than 20. Most days I will easily do more than 10 minutes, but if I'm having a bad day or don't feel well, even sick I should be able to walk for 10 minutes, if nothing else.BigBootyJudyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09805605472336049412noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3787606739643451335.post-40477064206742109222011-02-09T20:49:00.000-08:002011-02-09T20:55:04.802-08:00Wow, time does flyI can't believe I haven't updated my blog in 6 months! Not that I've had much to update about. I've been tossing the same few pounds up and down on the scale since we moved back to California in September. I do well for a few weeks and then fall back on bad habits, with enough exercise thrown in to keep me from gaining more than a few pounds. I've joined a gym here (LA Fitness), which isn't nearly as nice as the 24 Hour Fitness was in Washington, but the classes suffice. <br /><br />So, I'm so tired of my lack of progress, with my weight and my writing, that I've started a new blog to document my pledge to change. I'm tired of thinking that eventually I will learn to do the things I want to do; that eventually I will get motivated and self-disciplined; that eventually I will regain control of myself. You know what? eventually will never happen if I wait for it to happen. So, I've made the decision to make it happen. And I'm going to write about my efforts.BigBootyJudyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09805605472336049412noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3787606739643451335.post-1272078376891354142010-09-13T11:21:00.000-07:002010-09-13T11:27:07.678-07:00ChangesWe've recently relocated back to California. That's 3 moves in 2 1/2 years, two of them being long distance. Suffice it to say, I am TIRED of moving! Hopefully we'll stay put for at least a couple years. I'm not thrilled to be back to point A, but I can live with it. <br /><br />Since the decision was made at the beginning of August to relocate, I haven't maintained my exercise regime. As a result, I've lost all my muscle tone. My weight dropped several pounds, through lack of exercise and eating about the same number of calories as I was burning, so I'm now wearing pretty much the same size clothes but I'm softer, with less energy and more aches and pains. I've tried at least walking a bit, but that's about it. I definitely need to re-start my exercising!<br /><br />I have joined a walking/running group and have my first meetup tonight. Its kinda farther than I wanted to have to drive, about 12 miles away, but not so far as to make it not worthwhile. We'll see how it goes.BigBootyJudyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09805605472336049412noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3787606739643451335.post-15062552591842540132010-07-26T15:02:00.000-07:002010-07-26T15:05:33.070-07:00No Longer Obese!!!I can finally say I am no longer considered obese!!!! It's just a number, I know, but it still feels great. This morning, after returning from a week's vacation no less, I weighed in at 137.4. Woohoo!!! Getting so close to my goal weight. Well, I still have 27 pounds to go, but still! The bodybugg is my new best friend and so is exercise. I'm adding a morning routine of Pilates, just 15 minutes worth. I'm also going shopping next weekend to buy some new clothes! I'm offically a size 8 and while I've bought a couple pairs of pants, I really want to get a couple nice shirts and even a pair of sexy heels. I haven't worn heels in years and I think it's time! I want to feel feminine and sexy. I also want to get some new perfume. I'm ready for a new me.<br /><br />We're planning on moving back to California - I'm VERY excited to go back. Washington is beautiful but it rains too damned much and I miss my family.BigBootyJudyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09805605472336049412noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3787606739643451335.post-2154320999123454142010-07-16T11:06:00.000-07:002010-07-16T11:11:09.381-07:00Day 57 and BMI and Weigh-InFirstly, my weight this morning was 138.6. That was my goal before I went on vacation - so yay me!! I was all excited, thinking I was finally UNDER the obesity range. However, when I did the calculation, my BMI is 30.0. Another 0.2 pound loss and I would be merely overweight today rather than still obese. Frustrating, but really meaningless, right? I mean, I'm doing great so that would be a stupid thing to get caught up in. And by tomorrow I could be under the 30. So, whatev, I'm happy with my progress! 28 pounds to go.<br /><br />I'm on Day 57 of my 100 days of exercise goal. It's weird because now I feel off if I don't exercise. It really is true that it becomes habit forming. Yesterday I had done only 30 minutes of strength training and usually would follow that up with at least a walk in the evening, if not a jog or an aerobics class. But I just didn't have time with getting ready for vacation, so I skipped the aerobic portion of my workout. I had a really hard time getting to sleep and I felt like I was missing something. I plan on squeezing in a jog before I hit the road today, though. Getting my daily exercise will be a challenge on the road, but we'll figure it out. I have a gym membership to 24 hour fitness, so I can always stop at any one of those along the way.BigBootyJudyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09805605472336049412noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3787606739643451335.post-40233833823865999482010-07-13T12:20:00.000-07:002010-07-13T12:29:18.946-07:00BodybuggSo, after several weeks of being on plan and really kicking butt with my exercise, but not seeing any real changes, I bought the bodybugg. I just wanted to know my calorie burn in reality, not an estimate based on my weight, age and height. I am extremely short so I often fall so far from the bell curve that averages can be quite off for me. <br /><br />It has been an EXCELLENT tool! I weighed in at 139.2 this morning. In the two weeks I've had the Bodybugg, I've lost 4 pounds. I've learned that if I hardly do any exercise in a day and spend all day on my bum working, I burn about 1400 - 1500 calories. If I spend 30 to 60 minutes exercising moderately, I burn 1900 - 2100 calories. If I spend at least an hour exercising AND am active all day, I can burn anywhere from 2100 - 3000 calories. I am now able to ensure that I am eating less that I burn no matter what kind of day I'm having. I now see that when I was always aiming for 1200 - 1500 calories a day in consumption, and sometimes going a little over that, on the days I wasn't really active I was either breaking even or eating more than I was burning, even though the website I was using to track my calories always said I was under my calorie burn. <br /><br />I would highly recommend this tool to anyone wanting to be more exact in their calculations for eating. You do have to track calories, but I was doing this anyway. It also helps to see how many calories you are burning, even the burn per minute. When I'm working at my desk, I'm burning about 1.4 to 1.9 calories per minute, depending on how often I'm getting up from my seat. When I work out, I can burn anywhere from 2 calories per minute to 10 calories per minute. I watch that burn and push myself harder on my workouts so I can get a higher burn. I also use it to try to hit a calorie burn of 2100 calories a day. Knowing how few calories I burn when I'm working all day, I've started taking breaks from work to jump rope, jog in place or other exercises to get my heart going and increase my burn by the end of the day. Or if it is getting late and I'm nowhere near my goal, I'll go for a walk or do some house cleaning to get my burn up. It's really helped to keep me motivated in moving.<br /><br />Anyway, not to try to sell a product, but it has been great for me. I'm almost under 30 on my BMI! YAY!BigBootyJudyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09805605472336049412noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3787606739643451335.post-87222247313640003552010-06-20T19:58:00.000-07:002010-06-20T20:03:13.776-07:00Day 32I am on Day 32 of my 100 days of exercise goal. 32 days straight of exercising for at least 30 minutes a day. I think that's damn good, if I say so myself. I am doing a variety of exercises at the moment and I think I may even be a bit addicted to it. For instance, today I went for a bike ride (nearly 9.5 miles) and then completed a work-out DVD later. Yesterday I did a workout DVD, of strength training, in the morning and 3.5 miles on the treadmill at an incline in the evening. The day before that I did 45 minutes of weight lifting and an hour of walking/jogging on the treadmill at gym. Crazy, huh? But, I seem to really enjoy exercising at the moment. I love how I can move my body rather easily. One day hubby and I walked with the kids to the park and I jumped on the monkey bars. He was like "no way you can swing all the way across" but I did! It was hard and it felt awkward and my arms felt like they were going to fall off, but I did make it across. Only, it bugged me that my back didn't feel strong enough and that my abs were still a bit too weak. I felt like I was only able to control my body a little bit, nothing like when I was a kid. I know that all things get more difficult as we get older, but I decided that I wanted to get into good enough shape that I could easily swing across the monkey bars. It has definitely spurred me on with the strength training. Anyway, it totally helps to have a gym buddy too.BigBootyJudyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09805605472336049412noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3787606739643451335.post-57332397428703934732010-06-16T21:58:00.000-07:002010-06-16T22:05:24.646-07:00Plateau? Or What?It's been a while since I've blogged! But, not because I've been off the wagon. In fact, I've been doing really well, with both eating and exercising. I still eat more than I'd like some days, but I'm usually a good 250 to 500 below what I've burned. And I'm exercising every day, without fail, for between 30 and 120 minutes. Some days I'm burning 500 to 600 calories. I've been strength training too. And walking/jogging at least 20 miles a week. So, I've been doing crazy well.<br /><br />So, what's the problem? Well...I've hardly lost any weight! I'm down a pound in the last few weeks. I should easily have lost 3 to 6 pounds. I should be below 140! But, I'm just floating along, not really seeing any weight changes. My clothes aren't looser. I feel like I'm running in place, faster and faster, and getting no where. <br /><br />So, I know it's only been a few weeks. And I know that I should be building muscle. Maybe I am, maybe I'm not. Maybe I'm not tracking my calories correctly. Maybe I'm burning a lot less calories than I think. <br /><br />I really don't know.<br /><br />So, I've decided NOT to jump on the scale for the next two weeks. The scales are put up in the laundry room out of reach. I also bought a tape measure. I'm going to measure myself and then not weigh myself or check my measurements again for two weeks. And keep my calories down, but not too far down. And keep exercising. And I SHOULD see results. If not, I'm going to the doctor! :)BigBootyJudyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09805605472336049412noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3787606739643451335.post-9930256633371689512010-05-22T09:50:00.000-07:002010-05-22T09:53:39.281-07:00MotivatedI've been motivated by progress. Since tracking my calories and feeling some renewed determination using SparkPeople.com, I've started to see some real progress. I'm at my all-time low of 145.4, my clothes are definitely getting looser and I'm getting stronger. I'm tracking my mileage from my walking/jogging and I'm doing about 15 to 20 miles a week, which is impressive to me! In fact, I'm going to take the kids on a long walk today. It's great to actually feel like my efforts are paying off. I'm still having my food days and I still think about food constantly, so I have a long way to go, but it's nice to be going in the right direction.BigBootyJudyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09805605472336049412noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3787606739643451335.post-86640986693817141272010-05-16T23:18:00.000-07:002010-05-16T23:26:45.017-07:00ProgressI am finally making some real progress with my diet. I've even increased my exercising. I'm jogging most days and walking several miles in the afternoons. I'm keeping my calories between 1200 and 1600, depending on how active I've been that day, on most days. I'm tracking my calories and my fitness and my water intake. <br /><br />I'm not entirely sure of the reason for the turnaround, although I think a big part of it is that I've joined a new weight loss website that I find to be particularly motivating. (SparkPeople.com) It uses a point system and awards and has some cool tracking options that motivates me to do well. I found them when I saw their diet book on Amazon.com. Anyway, if you're looking for motivation, I highly recommend checking them out.<br /><br />I've also become more friendly with one of the girls in my mom's group. We've known each other since October, but have only recently began spending time together away from the group. Her husband is also away overnight for work so we have dinner together quite a bit. Not only to give each other company and distract the kids, but also to share the cooking, cleanup and child care aspects of dinnertime. Its been working out really well. She's very easy to be around because we share similar positions on child rearing and she isn't in competition wiht me at all. On top of all that, she is also trying to lose weight and we are jogging/walking together most mornings. We can share our ups and downs with food without worry of censure and we know the other understands. We even have similar food issues. I'm very lucky to have become friends with her. <br /><br />Everything else is plodding along. I didn't get a chance to post my weigh-in, but I was down to 147 this week. Hoping to hit 145 next week, but we'll see. I know that I don't tend to see much progress on the scale when I'm working out a lot. It'll come off with time. I'm in that awkward phase between pants sizes and I'm hoping to lose enough to get out of my baggy pants and into a size 10. That will be great!BigBootyJudyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09805605472336049412noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3787606739643451335.post-79207077221462092822010-05-09T19:46:00.000-07:002010-05-09T19:47:02.179-07:00This is ItHow many times have I told myself "This is it!" thinking that I had finally made the firm decision to lose weight once and for all, only to lose that determination, slowly or suddenly, over the following weeks, days or even hours? I've had so many "aha!" moments, I think I don't actually know what an "aha" moment is. I've convinced myself many times that I have hit a turning poing in my life...only to realize that nothing has actually changed. My "This is it!" became: "This is it (I hope)!" or "This is it (please)!" or "This is it (until it's not)!" <br /><br />I am on my umpteenth "This is it!" I am tracking calories, making smart choices, exercising, not snacking at night...doing everything "right." And, you know what? This IS it, right now. And that's okay if I slide back to some bad habits, because every "This is it" has been a forward part of my journey. So "This is it right now!" is my new catchphrase. Every good choice I make, is a time I didn't make a bad choice. Those add up, as surely as does the calories and the pounds. It isn't "on" or "off," it just is whatever is happening at that point in time and every moment of every day is "This is it right now."BigBootyJudyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09805605472336049412noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3787606739643451335.post-74492495015055085092010-05-02T19:22:00.000-07:002010-05-02T19:24:27.865-07:00An ImrovementI've had an improvement in my eating over the past couple days. I ate less than 1300 calories both today and yesterday. Yesterday I didn't exercise, other than a couple hours shopping, but today I went for a bike ride with the kids and am about to get on the treadmill. I feel much more able to control myself. I went out and bought a food scale because I'm determined to track my calories better.BigBootyJudyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09805605472336049412noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3787606739643451335.post-7740704953715035072010-04-29T13:07:00.000-07:002010-04-29T13:11:36.550-07:00Weigh-InWeight: 149<br />Gain: 1.6<br /><br />Yep, this week hasn't been going so well. Monday I did really well and then bombed on Tuesday and Wednesday. Plus, I had eaten my way through the weekend, starting on Friday. So, it is not surprising that this week was a gain. I'm just glad that it wasn't more of a gain. Today is going well, so far, so I hope to keep things on an even keel. <br /><br />One thing I noticed when I was eating too much, is I had stopped using artificial sweetener, Truvia, in my morning tea because it was making me feel nauseated. Instead, I started using raw sugar or honey in my morning tea or coffee. Last night I purchased some Splenda and put that in my morning tea and I feel much more in control of my hunger again. In fact, today was the first day I have stuck to my 5 hour rule this week. There may be something to that after all. I'll see how the rest of my day goes; although I am pretty determined to do well. <br /><br />I am considering trying Weight Watchers again, but can't decide. Does anyone have any comments or suggestions about it?BigBootyJudyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09805605472336049412noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3787606739643451335.post-34525315774598582662010-04-27T23:05:00.000-07:002010-04-27T23:08:01.948-07:00And it started out so well...I did well at the beginning of the day, but it went downhill after lunch. Well, even before that I guess because I didn't make it to my first goal of no sugar for the first 5 hours of my day. I didn't make it with my second goal of no eating afer 9:00 pm. I didn't exercise at all today. And I didn't stay under 1400 calories. In fact, I probably didn't stay under 2000 calories. Ugh! I did so well yesterday!!! Well, tomorrow, as always, another day. I'll just start again.BigBootyJudyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09805605472336049412noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3787606739643451335.post-24596267034743627192010-04-26T22:15:00.001-07:002010-04-26T22:21:29.742-07:00Good dayAnd, no, I wasn't saying hello in Australian. <br /><br />Today was a good day for eating. I kept my calories under 1400, never felt like I was starving hungry and managed to keep to my am rule of no processed sugar. I had one moment when I was going to have a few Jolly Rancher candies, but after moaning about overeating all weekend, hubby grabbed the candies and threw them in the trash. I NEARLY went into the trash to retrieve them when he wasn't looking, but managed to resist and then the craving went away. Later, when I was driving my 7 year old to the store, I had a candy that had been in my purse, but didn't have any more than that even though there were more in my purse. That was a good moment :)<br /><br />I worked out to a Jillian Michaels DVD today, which kicked my butt. I didn't even complete the full 40 minute workout; probably I did about 30 minutes. Ah well, 30 minutes is much better than nothing.<br /><br />If it isn't raining in the morning, I'll be going for a jog with a friend. That will be a relief after Jillian Michaels :)<br /><br />I've implemented 2 new "rules." Not really rules, per se, but I don't have a better word for it. The first is no eating after 9pm. Not hard and fast (I'm not going to quickly cram a bunch of food in at 8:59 pm) but I want to try to stop eating so mindlessly at night and thought this may help. The second is that for every 3 days I do well, I get one day off. Not completely off, like eat a million calories with no sweat, but off as in not having to actually count calories. Maybe this will help me from completely losing it and going bonkers with my eating after being religious about withholding calories for several days. I know that I just have to do well tomorrow and the next day and then I can relax my eating regimen a little and not having to feel guilty or bad about it. I'll let you know how that goes.BigBootyJudyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09805605472336049412noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3787606739643451335.post-27729583902555012422010-04-25T21:56:00.000-07:002010-04-25T22:03:23.769-07:00The WeekendAren't the weekends great for getting off plan? I tracked my calories (over 2000) Friday and Saturday but didn't even bother today. My saving grace, if there is one, is that I've been so busy! And not just with a lot of things to do to fill up my day, but with being actively busy. Saturday I spent the entire morning cleaning, then went for a walk with a friend, then cleaned up from our visit/dinner, then got on the treadmill for another 30 minutes. I didn't finally sit down last night until after 10pm.<br /><br />Today I started with a walk with a friend, then cleaned again, then went to a friend's for a late lunch and walked again, then returned home and went for a bike ride with my daughter, then spent the last two hours cleaning again. Ugh, so much cleaning! And I'm doing laundry, which needs to be put away before I can go to bed. So, although I've been eating and eating and eating, at least I've also been burning and burning and burning. Probably not more than I've been eating but I'm hoping to at least break even. <br /><br />Tomorrow is Monday, so back to the grind stone and back to counting calories and my 5 hour, no refined sugar rule. I also want to implement a no eating after 9pm rule to stop the night time snacking. The snacking is making up 50% of my calories at the moment - not good!<br /><br />I'm confident next week will go well.BigBootyJudyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09805605472336049412noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3787606739643451335.post-34363105679074907442010-04-24T19:57:00.000-07:002010-04-24T20:01:21.233-07:00All part of the process...I had several good days of eating and exercising and then last night.. I overate. Its all part of the cycle and the process. I ate a lot tonight, too, but not so much as last night. And tonight was just eating a little more dinner than I needed to. Last night, I ate until I felt sick. I woke at 2am and still felt full. And it was all ice cream and candy and treats, etc. etc. Anyway, so I woke this morning disgusted with myself, but then I realized that it is all part of the process. No one can be 100% and trying to keep my calories to within a certain amount always causes me to feel deprived and rebound by eating too much. So, today I didn't mind if I ate a little more at dinner. I'll just do an extra-long walk on the treadmill. It doesn't mean that I failed or that I have to start over or that I "lost" any of the ground I had gained. It just means that I have to keep going, day to day, trying to make good choices and trying to stay busy and trying to keep exercising. I do pretty good overall, and that's what counts.BigBootyJudyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09805605472336049412noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3787606739643451335.post-6288005691080357062010-04-23T09:55:00.000-07:002010-04-23T09:59:33.565-07:00Weigh-InWeight: 147.4<br />Loss: 2.4<br /><br />I actually lost more than that because my weight had gotten up to around 152 or 153, but I went by the last weight I had published on here. It was great to get back to my lowest weight! And in less than a week! I'm very pleased. I know that the loss will slow down, but that's okay as long as it keeps going down. I am feeling good about my weight loss efforts and like I can maintain them. I just feel I've turned a corner. That other night, when I had the talk with myself, something just seemed to click in my mind.<br /><br />The exercising has been going well, too. Yesterday I went for a walk and then actually worked on my Wii Fit, which I haven't done in months. Tonight I will just walk because I'm a little sore from 2 days of working on my side leg muscles. They aren't too sore, but enough that I think I should give it a rest. Anyway, a walk will be good!BigBootyJudyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09805605472336049412noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3787606739643451335.post-82290047817278180132010-04-22T12:26:00.000-07:002010-04-22T12:33:52.846-07:00HungerThere is no hunger like the 3rd day of being "on plan." It doesn't matter how many veggies and fruit I eat or water and unsweetened tea I drink, I am HUNGRY! Its okay, though, cuz I know that it means I am burning through all this cushy fat covering my body. And that's what I want. Still, I want to eat everything in the kitchen too. Its not even like I'm trying to stay under 800 calories or something stupid, I'm trying to stay under 1400, which should be easy. But, of course, it isn't. And I know it isn't because I NEED more than 1400 calories but because my body (my stomach) is accustomed to getting more than 2000 calories and we are built to maintain the status quo. My tummy will become accustomed to less calories and I will feel less hungry...eventually.<br /><br />The good news is that I am back under 150, yay! I was very excited to see 148 on the scale this morning. I'm still above my lowest weight of 147, but it's just such a relief to get away from the 152 I had eaten my way back up to. Yeah, that was only a 5 pound gain, but... it was a 5 pound GAIN! So frustrating when it takes at least 2 weeks to take 5 pounds back off again. But, enough of that, I'm getting back down there and that's the important thing. And I really feel that doing the no refined sugar for 5 hours per day has been a huge help. Not just because I don't eat as many calories during those 5 hours and I am learning more about the food that I eat, but because it proved to me that I CAN say no and I CAN control what I eat. I think that was the catalyst for me getting back to seriously cutting my overall calories.<br /><br />Not that I'm going to be ridiculous about it. In fact, when I add up my calories, I'm writing it down in a notebook and guesstimating my calories rather than getting all detailed about it. And I have had a day or 2 when I didn't stick to my no sugar morning but I just started again the next day. And today I will go out to lunch with hubby and probably eat most of my calories for the day in that one meal, but that's okay too. I'll just do an extra-good workout later. There's gotta be give and take in any weight loss plan.BigBootyJudyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09805605472336049412noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3787606739643451335.post-69906335652199095702010-04-20T17:05:00.000-07:002010-04-20T17:11:46.450-07:00New BeginningsLast night, as I was trying to fall asleep with a too-full stomach and feeling like such a fat pig, I decided that enough was enough. I CAN stop eating, if I really want to. I have proven to myself that I can say no to unhealthy food even when I'm truly hungry. I have proven to myself that it isn't about willpower or self-control but about making a firm commitment and not being wishy-washy about it. It truly is all in my head.<br /><br />Thus, today has been a very good day with regarding to eating. I didn't get much of a walk in because it started raining and because I've been so swamped with work; however, I do intend to walk some more this evening on the treadmill. I am bound and determined, finally, to buckle down and start losing some serious weight. I'm tired of kinda trying to lose weight. It's not like I am physically incapable of doing so. I just haven't WANTED to enough. I've wanted the food more than I've wanted to lose weight. Today, I want to lose weight more than I want to eat yummy food.BigBootyJudyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09805605472336049412noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3787606739643451335.post-7682798267289370042010-04-19T23:18:00.000-07:002010-04-19T23:23:05.532-07:00Eating...and eating...and eatingRoast beef, candy bars, strawberry shortcake, oh my. I am an eating machine. I do not care about fat, nutrition or calories. I do not care about hunger or fullness or what I need or don't need. I do not care about the numbers on a scale, or on the tag of my jeans. I just want the pleasure of yummy food in my mouth and a super full belly. Maybe I died of starvation in a past life. Or I just have a very empty life and I am trying to fill it up with goodies. I can't even say with good food because, although some food I ate was nutritious, the majority was not. Chips and ice cream and fruit snacks that don't actually contain any fruit. Blech! I hate myself and I love to eat. I love to eat and to hate myself. <br /><br />Tomorrow is a new day - I tell myself this every day. When will tomorrow arrive?BigBootyJudyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09805605472336049412noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3787606739643451335.post-85651472559152456862010-04-18T12:44:00.000-07:002010-04-18T12:59:04.937-07:00The PlanI always say I don't have "a plan" but I now do, actually. My plan started out with an experiment, but it is working well enough that I have made it part of my diet plan. My plan is to not eat anything with refined sugar for the first 5 hours of my day from the time I get out of bed. This morning I didn't get out of bed until 9am, so no refined sugar until 2pm. That doesn't mean that I can't have natural sugar, such as a piece of fruit, or even honey if I wanted - just no refined sugar. This has turned out to be a good plan for several reasons:<br /><br />1. It has cut quite a few calories from my diet. I am drinking my morning tea without sugar. The other morning, we were driving to Seattle and I hadn't planned for breakfast beyond stopping at a convenience store and grabbing a banana. Only, the convenience store I stopped at didn't have any bananas or non-processed foods. I ended up driving to a grocery store and buying a banana and some cheese. If I wasn't sticking to my plan, I would have just eaten a doughnut for breakfast with the kids.<br /><br />2. I'm forced to eat wholesome food. ALL processed foods has sugar, it seems. Even chips and soups. It's crazy! So, to eat food with no refined sugar, I'm having to eat simple, whole foods, such as fresh fruits, vegetables, even eggs. No bread, of course. I also can eat shredded wheat because it has few ingredients and no sugar. And it has tons of fiber.<br /><br />3. I'm learning about the food I eat. Beyond the nutrition label, I'm actually reading the ingredient label. This is very educational and it makes me more aware of the foods I am eating.<br /><br />4. The purpose of the experiement was to see if I could stop the endless eating throughout the day. So far, the plan has been fairly successful in this regard. I have been eating a lot less since I started the plan, although some days I'm still eating more than I should. It doesn't fix everything, but it is improving my overall caloric intake and making me less "insatiably hungry" in the evenings.<br /><br />5. By gaining control of the first 5 hours of my day, I feel more in control the rest of the day. I am finding that I can turn down junk food even later in the day, just because I KNOW I CAN! I feel happy with myself for sticking to my plan each morning, and that gives me the motivation to keep it up.<br /><br />The reason I'm only eating this way for the first 5 hours of the day is I would not be able to keep it up all day indefinitely. But I can do 5 hours. Anyone can do 5 hours. Or make it 2 or 3 hours, rather than 5, and build up to it. If you can eat perfectly for even part of your day, you're much better off than eating badly all day. That's my reasoning anyway. And knowing that at some point in my day I can relax the rules and go back to eating most things makes it possible for me to maintain the standard for the 5 hours I need to do it. I have been able to say no to food even when I desperately wanted it, just because I was still in my 5 hour zone. I can do that because I know I can eat it or something similar if I really want to later on. But, later on I usually don't want to anymore.BigBootyJudyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09805605472336049412noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3787606739643451335.post-55034235206321584072010-04-14T19:11:00.000-07:002010-04-14T19:16:40.062-07:00Experiment Day 2I only lasted a couple hours this morning without sugar. Well, it wasn't so much that I was craving sugar, I was just super hungry because all I had eaten for breakfast was an apple. I am out of Shredded Wheat cereal and didn't have time to cook up an egg. Tomorrow I will scramble a couple eggs, though, and that will make it easier to stick to my no refined sugar for the first 5 hours rule. The food I had eaten that had refined sugar in it was Vegetarian Chili. Weird huh? But, I guess spaghetti sauce has sugar in it, too, so maybe not so weird. <br /><br />As far as eating for the remainder of the day, I definitely have regressed from yesterday. I've eaten quite a bit, although not as bad as some previous days. I made a dinner of boneless, skinless chicken and cauliflower, followed by a yogurt. It was good! I still feel hungry though :( And not hungry in a stomach empty sense, but in a I want to keep eating sense.<br /><br />I didn't walk today or engage in any other form of exercise, so my plan for the evening is to work on some cleaning and then do a Pilates DVD. I haven't done Pilates in forever and I could definitely use with doing that sort of exercise.<br /><br />So, better get on with it then.BigBootyJudyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09805605472336049412noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3787606739643451335.post-34988495490134718722010-04-14T00:03:00.000-07:002010-04-14T00:15:13.862-07:00Experiment Day 1So today was the first day of my experiment of no eating refined sugar in the morning. I decided on 4 hours, from the first time I ate, which was at 10:00 am. I had a bowl of shredded wheat with NO sugar on it. I had a cup of tea w/ Truvia. <br /><br />I decided to eat lunch at 1:30 since I had company coming at 2 and knew I wouldn't be able to eat again until evening. Which put me before the 4 hour mark. I looked for all sorts of eats, but everything in my cupboard was out - even veggie beef soup!! Did you know veggie beef soup has sugar in it??? I didn't, but now I do. EVERYTHING has sugar in it!! I ended up scrambling a couple eggs with chopped tomatoes and onions. It was actually really yummy and I was glad that I had to put more effort into my lunch than just heating up a can of soup.<br /><br />As far as how I ate over the day... REALLY well!!! I ate some grapes (which tasted especially sweet after avoiding sugar for my first 2 meals), crackers and cheese and avoided the cookies someone had brought over. For dinner I ate some potato soup, a salad and one piece of whole grain bread. I then had 4 Jolly Rancher candies for dessert :)<br /><br />I felt much more in control of my eating. I didn't feel like eating beyond hunger or that I couldn't get full. Whether this was due in fact with my avoiding refined sugar for the beginning of my day, or just because of the act in avoiding a certain food made me feel more in control, I have no idea. That's why I wanted to do it for at least 3 days.<br /><br />I also walked with my neighbor this evening. We hadn't walked earlier as we would have usually, but I decided this evening to just go for a walk and asked if she wanted to join me, which she did. We didn't have our lil ones or strollers so we put in some good mileage. I feel really good about that too.<br /><br />All in all, a good day!BigBootyJudyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09805605472336049412noreply@blogger.com0