Drinking? Not a Problem

Every diet advice article you read emphasizes it: drink lots of water. (You did realize this post was about drinking water, right?)

Water’s never been very appealing to me, so I’ve had to dress it up a little to keep the momentum going. Every day when I arrive at the office, while my computer is booting up for the day, I take my 4 water bottles to the water fountain and fill them up. (If you aren’t aware of the controversy over bottled water, check this out. I recycle my bottles so I don’t feel bad at all about it.)

When I get back to my desk, my mix factory gears up. One bottle turns a deep orange with peach-flavored green tea. The second bottle looks a little foggy with a clear raspberry multivitamin drink. The third bottle gets a pinky-tan shade with apple-cranberry white tea and the last bottle is strictly for fun with either pink lemonade or raspberry Crystal Light.

By the end of the day, I’ve usually finished them all off and refilled at least one on my way back from one of my many,many trips to the rest room. The refilled bottle gets a black cherry fiber drink packet. Yum!

It’s really easy to keep track as well and make sure I get at least the minimum water amount each day. Since I usually have another bottle or two at home, my average is about 7 bottles a day.

The First Weigh-In

Last Friday: 172.2

Today: 167.2

Difference: 5 pounds

Inches lost Chest/Waist/Hip: 3.5

That’s a pretty good week, in my book! Some of it is probably just water, but I’m pleased and motivated to keep it up. While I haven’t done anything as dramatic as going down a size, the clothes I do have fit better right now.

This upcoming week: More exercise, no chocolate!

Chocolate, My Nemesis

After 5 days of perfect low carbing, yesterday I screwed up. The first part wasn’t so bad… I walked to the bank and then on my way back, I stopped at Quizno’s and ate one of their 200 calorie Sammies. (Oh man, was it good!) I ripped off about a third of the super yummy flatbread to save on carbs, but it was really, really hard to throw it away.

The problem with a few carbs is that they lead to wanting more carbs… by the time I got home, I was crashing and looking for something else to eat when I found them… in the top cupboard over the sink… the chocolate squares I bought at the after Christmas sales.

Justifying to myself that chocolate is an antioxidant (and really good for you. Really!) I practically inhaled most of a square. My daughter saw me eating it and said, “Are you allowed to eat chocolate on a diet?”

Shamed, I gave her the rest of it. But then… there were 7 others waiting in the cabinet. Much to everyone’s joy, I quickly handed them out to the 4 kids I had last night (my nephew was over) and got rid of most of them… but one of the dark chocolate squares was still there. Yes, I caved. I ate one and a half squares of really decadent chocolate.

While my intention was to do extra exercise to mitigate the damage, it didn’t happen. I ended up sitting on my rear watching Project Runway most of the night. And… ahem… eating whole grain, low fat quesadillas. Maybe one too many of those too.

Staying off the scale today because I don’t wanna see!

Oh, Those Naysayers…

So, I’m out to dinner last night with my sister and her family (at Moe’s) and I’m eating my low-carb plate of chopped chicken, cheese and lettuce and my sister asks how the diet is going.

When I tell her it’s going well and I seem to be losing pretty quickly, she immediately starts telling me that everyone she’s ever known who’s lost weight on low-carb has gained it all back and how she guesses it’s ok for a short term goal but it won’t last.

Well, here’s the thing: anyone who loses weight will gain their weight back if they start eating the way they used to and stop exercising! Duh.

I asked her who she knew who’d ever gone on a diet and kept the weight off without changing their habits permanently. There is no diet (that I know of) that will immunize you from the effects of cinnamon rolls and loaded baked potatoes. No matter how you get the weight off, you do have to change the habits that loaded your body with fat in the first place.

Personally, I find losing to be the hardest part. Regaining is a relatively slow process that creeps up on you before you know it, but getting to my goal weight should motivate me for at least a year or more to maintain.

I can’t do low carb for the rest of my life, but I do think I can hit a reasonable weight and transition to a balanced diet that includes some of those treacherous carbs.

More Math and Goals

I want to reach my ideal weight (130) by June 14. That’s 19 weeks at 2 pounds a week.

In order to do that, I need a deficit of 1000 calories per day, or 7000 calories a week. That sounds like a tall order, but it’s not as bad as it seems.

My BMR (base metabolic rate) which is how many calories I burn just by being alive is about 1500. When I restrict my calorie intake to 1000 calories a day, I have an automatic deficit of 500 calories.

• Stairclimbing for 15 minutes on my lunch hour burns approximately 160 calories.
• Walking for 30 minutes at 3.5 miles an hour burns approximately 150 calories.
• Sitting at my desk working on the computer burns about 100 calories an hour, times about 6 hours… that’s 600 calories right there!

If I can get in 3 weightlifting sessions at the gym (not to mention playing in the pool with the kids afterwards) I think I’m covered to slag at least 2 pounds a week from my body.

I’m also focusing on “fidgeting” more. I figure every move I make is one more calorie I withdraw from my fat account, whether or not it shows up right away. It all adds up!

• I sing loudly in the car, tensing my stomach muscles often to help belt out the high notes.
• I stretch at my desk 3-4 times a day.
• I tense and release my leg muscles every so often.
• When there’s no one else in the halls, I swing my arms over my head to get the blood pumping.
• I carry stuff up to the kid’s rooms instead of leaving it on the stairs for them to ignore pick up when they go upstairs.
• I’m going to start using the restroom one floor up and using the stairs to reach it at work.

The picture I keep in my mind is taking a pair of size 5 jeans to the fitting room… and having be a little too loose…

(And I have a cold. One of those stuffy, bone-aching, head-spinning colds. While it does take my mind off wanting to eat anything, I’m only good for laying around and sniffling. Exercise will not be at the top of my list for a few days. :(  On a positive note, my ketostix show that I am clearly in ketosis, burning fat for fuel instead of glucose or carbs.  Yay!)

What Does 41 Pounds of Fat Look Like?

Yeah, I’m grossed out too. This photo is going on my fridge.

More math: I’ve discovered (using a body fat calculator) that my lean mass (bones, tissue, muscle, fluid) is 115 pounds. We need some fat to protect our organs and such so 15 pounds would be about 12% fat. That puts my ideal healthy weight at 130 pounds.

Subtract my current weight of 171 and you get a horrifying 41 pounds of useless fat that I’m carrying around. 41 pounds of blubbery fat that I have to dress, sit on, and haul around everywhere I go. THAT’S DISGUSTING!!

Facing the Eggs, Meat and Cheese

These aren’t my favorite foods. But I can do this, I know I can (said the little engine who could.)

I just got back from a trip to the store where I loaded the cart with salads and salad fixings, strawberries and cantalope (a couple of the lowest carb fruits) and lots of meat, cheese and eggs.  I feel a little sick thinking about it.  But I can do this!

I’ve got a dozen eggs on the stove right now, hard boiling themselves into convenient snacks for the work day.   I’ve mapped out a plan that still keeps me at about 1200 calories a day, mostly protein.  I’ve bought the ketostix so I can tell when the weight loss is kicking in (those are what keep me sticking to it!  I love seeing that stick turn purple.)

I’ve got a can of almonds to add in to the mix once I’m past the induction period and can add more carbs.  I love almonds- I think for me, the key is to separate them out into little containers so I don’t eat too many.  But that’s 2 weeks away.  Eek!

I am happy to report that (since I’ve been dieting for several weeks) that my body has finally accepted the reduced calorie level and I’m no longer hungry all the time.  I even went with my sister and niece to Atlanta Bread Company and limited myself to half a turkey sandwich with the lid removed.  Even when my (evil) sister tried to tempt me into eating a chocolate chip muffin and went so far as to break off a chunk of it and set it on the table right under my nose, I resisted.  Ha!!  Take that, evildoer!

Who Really Loves You?

I’m gonna do it. I’ve studied a number of diets out there and I really and truly think low carb is the way to go. I looked and looked for the “all bread all the time” diet and Google failed me. Google, I thought you had all the answers!

Low carb is the most efficient way to force the body to burn fat for fuel instead of the readily available carbs. The thing that really is the sticking point is that I truly love carbs. Like, we should get married and settle down and be fat and happy together forever.

But that is a false dream, the delusions of a girl who needs to face the reality that carbs will turn on you. While satisfying your immediate desires, they really don’t have your best interests at heart. I mean sure, a warm chocolate chip cookie loves you when it’s waiting for you on the plate, but who’s there for you when your favorite jeans won’t zip? The cookie is not only part of the problem; it wants to lead you further astray in an attempt to comfort you. It’s all lies!

Smart women need to learn to look past the glamor and appeal of flour, sugar and 100-calorie cookie packs and appreciate the long term commitment of protein. It protects muscles, promotes efficient fuel burning and it will proudly be there for you in the fitting room.

Carbs, you’ve made a fool of me for the last time. I know who’s good for me for the long term, and it’s protein.