Hang in there gal! You're doing everything right and according to your plan, the results are just being slow. You'll get there. Sometimes the adjustment takes some hunger. Late night hunger is a problem I get sometimes too. Hot herbal tea helps me, doesn't help nutbar...but might be worth a try. I've also added glucomannan occasionally and found it helpful, especially when doing a PWO shake as a meal replacement shake.
Weighed my cereal this morning (Fiber one) and milk... going to skip the last stage 3 workout (I HATE 3B) and just start 4-A1 this morning. My work schedule changes June 1, so this will be the last week of getting up super-early (for me, at least) and trying to lift when I'm not as awake as I should be and then rushing to make it to work... I'll be getting off work at 2:30 on M/W so I can just go right after work to lift - YAY! I don't mind early cardio, but early lifting sucks.
The scale didn't make any big jumps, but it was probably about 1/2# lower today... still going for trends and that's hardly enough to feel secure in my program, but at least it didn't trend up even more today.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Susan4
Hang in there gal! You're doing everything right and according to your plan, the results are just being slow. You'll get there. Sometimes the adjustment takes some hunger. Late night hunger is a problem I get sometimes too. Hot herbal tea helps me, doesn't help nutbar...but might be worth a try. I've also added glucomannan occasionally and found it helpful, especially when doing a PWO shake as a meal replacement shake.
Thanks Susan, for the encouragement and ideas... I don't know why I didn't think of tea!!! It's worth a try... I've never tried glucomannan - I know Cassandra is big on it (or am I remembering wrong?) but it's gotten such mixed reviews... can I find it at GNC?
Quote:
Originally Posted by kfisherx
Bytsi, what food satisfy you (Fat or carbs) What foods do you crave?
What food satisfies me? Wow... sadly, I'm not sure I have a good answer... volume, I guess, is the best answer. Sugary foods can be nice, but they ALWAYS make me hungrier and are quite likely to start an overfeed... same with salty carbs (I don't do potato chips, but baked chips, tortilla chips, even popcorn) - my worst overfeeds are when I have a "small" snack of sugar or salt in the evening, and then I go for the other one (if I had sugar, I then want salt, or vice versa) and then I go back and forth. Fats can be filling, but I think I overeat them because they are so small for the calories...
Cravings - for whatever I can't have . In the evening (which is my worst time for eating) it's sugar or salty... Often it's whatever's in front of me that I can't/shouldn't eat, that someone else has... Sometimes I crave a nice big cheeseburger, and FRIES (probably the salt/fat/carb triple-bad whammy there)...
Karla - thank you for all the trouble-shooting... between you and Leigh's book, I hope to figure this out eventually...
Weighed my cereal this morning (Fiber one) and milk... going to skip the last stage 3 workout (I HATE 3B) and just start 4-A1 this morning. My work schedule changes June 1, so this will be the last week of getting up super-early (for me, at least) and trying to lift when I'm not as awake as I should be and then rushing to make it to work... I'll be getting off work at 2:30 on M/W so I can just go right after work to lift - YAY! I don't mind early cardio, but early lifting sucks.
The scale didn't make any big jumps, but it was probably about 1/2# lower today... still going for trends and that's hardly enough to feel secure in my program, but at least it didn't trend up even more today.
Thanks Susan, for the encouragement and ideas... I don't know why I didn't think of tea!!! It's worth a try... I've never tried glucomannan - I know Cassandra is big on it (or am I remembering wrong?) but it's gotten such mixed reviews... can I find it at GNC?
What food satisfies me? Wow... sadly, I'm not sure I have a good answer... volume, I guess, is the best answer. Sugary foods can be nice, but they ALWAYS make me hungrier and are quite likely to start an overfeed... same with salty carbs (I don't do potato chips, but baked chips, tortilla chips, even popcorn) - my worst overfeeds are when I have a "small" snack of sugar or salt in the evening, and then I go for the other one (if I had sugar, I then want salt, or vice versa) and then I go back and forth. Fats can be filling, but I think I overeat them because they are so small for the calories...
Cravings - for whatever I can't have . In the evening (which is my worst time for eating) it's sugar or salty... Often it's whatever's in front of me that I can't/shouldn't eat, that someone else has... Sometimes I crave a nice big cheeseburger, and FRIES (probably the salt/fat/carb triple-bad whammy there)...
Karla - thank you for all the trouble-shooting... between you and Leigh's book, I hope to figure this out eventually...
ALL of this sounds like me. I suck at working out in the morning, but I agree that running or elliptical in the morning seems easier than trying to swap weights and lifting heavy in the a.m.
I also get mega sugar cravings at night, but I will sooooo go back and forth. The worst is something with both. Chocolate covered pretzels, for example I think the hardest thing is that my office eats lunch out every day and they are big guys that eat things like burgers and fries and that's all I want. FRIES! Damn them. I find the less I eat them, tho, the easier it is to resist them, however getting to that point is really hard.
Bytsi.....when I cut sugar out of my diet, all of my cravings went away. No sugar. Period. That's what did it for me.
Yeah, I tried that, and it didn't work for me. It seemed to make my cravings even worse and I got obsessive. I found that when I added some fruit back in (blueberries & cherries right now), I don't have them anymore.
I think this will vary for everyone; maybe slowly introduce some additional fructose into your diet and see how it goes. Perhaps evening snack could be 10 cherries and some cottage cheese.
__________________
"If 'toning' is the goal, strength is the method." ~ Mark Rippetoe
Miss Jane NAILED it Bytsi. My cravings totally went away when I took sugar out of my diet. That is why I said to cut out Hi Gly carbs. So do your best to cut these things out and you too will do much better. You can drink A and W diet Root beer or make things like cottage cheese ice-cream to help you get over the sugary cravings.
Once you are purged of all of that your next assignment is to figure out if fatty foods or carby foods make you feel better and more fullfilled. I tend to feel really sluggish on fatty foods and so I know that my carbs need to be a big part of my diet if I want to be succesful. Jane does TNT type things with great success which tells me that fatty foods keep her feeling energy and full.
Spend the next couple of weeks getting rid of high Gly carbs, making sure you get your water (Don't just say you keep a 32 oz bottle around and sip it but count that you get 4 of those in you a day) and paying attention to everything you eat and how that feels to you. If it is a carb how does it make you feel? (like a piece of fruit) If it is fatty food you eat how does your body feel the next couple of hours?
The trick to this game is self awareness and keeping data. High Gly foods and dehydration will take your ability to be aware down. Once you have developed the awareness and understand what your body does well with then you will know when you need to eat and if you are eating correctly for your body. You won't have to ask anyone else.
Yeah, I tried that, and it didn't work for me. It seemed to make my cravings even worse and I got obsessive. I found that when I added some fruit back in (blueberries & cherries right now), I don't have them anymore.
I think this will vary for everyone; maybe slowly introduce some additional fructose into your diet and see how it goes. Perhaps evening snack could be 10 cherries and some cottage cheese.
Let me make myself VERY clear here. Only cut out processed sugars and Hy Gly PROCESSED foods. Whole, fFruits and veges of all sorts are okay to eat.
Ah! I'm glad you clarified. Removing things like scones, cookies, cupcakes, etc is of course the obvious and right thing to do. Removing fruit, though, was a killer for me. I've always been a 2-3 servings of fruit/day person and getting rid of that made me obsess about, of all things, Oreos. Which I don't even like.
Getting rid of processed carbs did remove cravings for them. Cheetos, kettle chips, fritos, pretzels, wheat thins - removing all processed snacky carbs from my diet did the trick.
The craving for sweets never went away, however. Fruit seems to address that just fine.
__________________
"If 'toning' is the goal, strength is the method." ~ Mark Rippetoe
Cravings - for whatever I can't have . In the evening (which is my worst time for eating) it's sugar or salty... Often it's whatever's in front of me that I can't/shouldn't eat, that someone else has... Sometimes I crave a nice big cheeseburger, and FRIES (probably the salt/fat/carb triple-bad whammy there)...
Karla - thank you for all the trouble-shooting... between you and Leigh's book, I hope to figure this out eventually...
I am not really doing anything. It is you who are finally waking up and realizing that YOU have to do something if you don't want the same shit to keep happening to you every day. I remember when I was in that place and specifically the day I had to buy clothing and NOTHING looked even remotely good on my fat body. I remember also being ready for that change.... The rest was easy...
Just another FYI Bytsi... I do a LOT of eating in the evening and just before I go to bed. By nature I am a night person and as such I crave food in the evenings too whereas it is easy for me to eat lighter in the morning. I make sure I always get protein in the morning (within an hour of waking), after working out and before I go to bed.
Between that first meal and lunch I am rarely hungry so I eat very lightly. (a piece of fruit and 10 almonds) Lunchtime I again eat pretty lightly. Around 3:00 PM I am starting to get good appetite so that is my first bigger meal. At 5:30PM I again eat and typically again at 8:00 or there about. Then just before bedtime (around midnight) again I stuff my face yet another time.
All those silly evening cravings just don't happen to me that way since I am continually eating.. And cool thing is that for my cut things are happening almost exactly as advertised. I am continuing to drop weight. Seems that eating at night is probably not the worst thing a body can do....
Just another FYI Bytsi... I do a LOT of eating in the evening and just before I go to bed. By nature I am a night person and as such I crave food in the evenings too whereas it is easy for me to eat lighter in the morning. I make sure I always get protein in the morning (within an hour of waking), after working out and before I go to bed.
I will come back and write a little more later, but I want to add in that I could not survive without my evening eating. Dinner is usually around 7, and it's odd, but salad follows at about 8pm. By 9:30 I have a bowl of fruit salad (with a biscotti, but a 30-odd cal one). Then I have a protein shake (just whey & water) before going to sleep. Without it I know I'd find myself up in the kitchen looking for something to eat! I know most conventional wisdom tells you little to no food in the evening, or no carbs after a certain hour. Well, that just doesn't work for me. This does.
Ah! I'm glad you clarified. Removing things like scones, cookies, cupcakes, etc is of course the obvious and right thing to do. Removing fruit, though, was a killer for me. I've always been a 2-3 servings of fruit/day person and getting rid of that made me obsess about, of all things, Oreos. Which I don't even like.
Don't forget chips (even baked) and breads as well. You know there are some popcorns that are freakishly high in protein and in fiber and low in fat that you could probably do without any problems.
LOL RE the Oreos! That is just weird. Funny but weird.
Thanks for making that distinction. I would never advocate getting rid of whole foods from a diet (unless the person was allergic or some rare thing)
Yeah, I tried that, and it didn't work for me. It seemed to make my cravings even worse and I got obsessive. I found that when I added some fruit back in (blueberries & cherries right now), I don't have them anymore.
I think this will vary for everyone; maybe slowly introduce some additional fructose into your diet and see how it goes. Perhaps evening snack could be 10 cherries and some cottage cheese.
DM, I don't mean sugar in fruit. I mean sugar-sugar....KWIM? No more candy, cookies, cakes, muffins, cereal with sugar, M&M's!!, fakeout 'protein bars' with sugar (ala fiber one or special k). No more soda, sugar in my tea, or regular peanut butter. No more jams or jellies with sugar. No more white anything. That's what I mean by no more sugar.
Yeah, I completely agree on cutting out "white" foods and those junky snack bars (like Kashi, Luna, etc). I don't care how much fiber & protein they have in them. They all have 30-50+ grams of added sugar - no thanks!
We cut all that stuff out back in early February (including all whole grain products and nearly all fruit). I lost a lot of fat, but doing so made my cravings worse, and they intensified as time passed. It's only the past 2 weeks that I've added back in whole grain products (once per day, after a workout) and some fruit and it's made a huge difference in my obsessive thoughts. I think they key for some people is to cut out all refined stuff, but to continue small-to-moderate consumption of foods like berries, apricots, whole wheat pasta, ezekiel wraps, homemade pizza with whole wheat crust (or on whole wheat tortillas/pitas), etc...
__________________
"If 'toning' is the goal, strength is the method." ~ Mark Rippetoe
Just another FYI Bytsi... I do a LOT of eating in the evening and just before I go to bed. By nature I am a night person and as such I crave food in the evenings too whereas it is easy for me to eat lighter in the morning. I make sure I always get protein in the morning (within an hour of waking), after working out and before I go to bed...I am continuing to drop weight. Seems that eating at night is probably not the worst thing a body can do....
I read an article on SparkPeople that reinforced that idea, Karla. The thing that is so bad about late night eating isn't just timing. It's because that is when most people will exceed their calories for the day. If you spread your daily amount over the evening hours, that won't necessarily sabotage your weight loss/maintenance efforts. As long as you are eating the correct number of calories - when doesn't matter as much...
Wow!!! This is awesome guys!!! I'm gonna try to reply, but if I don't hit everyone personally, please know I am reading and so appreciative of everything being posted here!
Quote:
Originally Posted by Susan4
I found capsules in the pharmacy section of a grocery store I think... No need to pay GNC prices.
Thanks Susan - I'll check when I hit the grocery store tomorrow.
Quote:
Originally Posted by jesca
ALL of this sounds like me. I suck at working out in the morning, but I agree that running or elliptical in the morning seems easier than trying to swap weights and lifting heavy in the a.m.
I also get mega sugar cravings at night, but I will sooooo go back and forth. The worst is something with both. Chocolate covered pretzels, for example I think the hardest thing is that my office eats lunch out every day and they are big guys that eat things like burgers and fries and that's all I want. FRIES! Damn them. I find the less I eat them, tho, the easier it is to resist them, however getting to that point is really hard.
Chocolate pretzels - you just HAD to mention them, didn't you? I feel ya' on the lunch thing. I don't have to deal with it as much at work, but just in general, it is hard to see people eating lotsa crap that tastes good. I agree with getting on a roll though - once I've been "good" for a few days, it's easier to stick with it. Like tonight - no fries from DH's plate or DS's plate. Not one!
Quote:
Originally Posted by kfisherx
Miss Jane NAILED it Bytsi. My cravings totally went away when I took sugar out of my diet. That is why I said to cut out Hi Gly carbs. You can drink A and W diet Root beer or make things like cottage cheese ice-cream to help you get over the sugary cravings.
Once you are purged of all of that your next assignment is to figure out if fatty foods or carby foods make you feel better and more fullfilled. I tend to feel really sluggish on fatty foods and so I know that my carbs need to be a big part of my diet if I want to be succesful. Jane does TNT type things with great success which tells me that fatty foods keep her feeling energy and full.
Spend the next couple of weeks getting rid of high Gly carbs, making sure you get your water (Don't just say you keep a 32 oz bottle around and sip it but count that you get 4 of those in you a day) and paying attention to everything you eat and how that feels to you. If it is a carb how does it make you feel? (like a piece of fruit) If it is fatty food you eat how does your body feel the next couple of hours?
Jane & Karla... ok - let's see. I am getting all the processed carbs out - this week I've been much more strict and aware. I can't eat cottage cheese (apparently I am lactose intolerant, but I'm gonna try the lactaid pills because I love cottage cheese except for what it does to my stomach!). I don't do diet drinks at all, but I'll find something... Tonight my plan is to sip some tea.
I don't think I do well without carbs, but I'll continue to work on my awareness of how I react to types of foods... And I DO drink a lot of water - that part I know I have down, no question. I am definitely not dehydrated!
Quote:
Originally Posted by kfisherx
I remember when I was in that place and specifically the day I had to buy clothing and NOTHING looked even remotely good on my fat body. I remember also being ready for that change.... The rest was easy...
What's hard is that I went through this once... I was much fatter (wore a size 16 from the plus-size shop, and I'm 5'2"). I dieted down, learned how to exercise... and maintained pretty well. I'm nowhere near being as fat as I was, but I'm still too far from where I could and SHOULD be. I used to love going in and having clothes fit in regular stores. They still fit - I just got more and more aware (critical) of my body and removing the blubber is going to go a long way towards helping with that.
Quote:
Originally Posted by kfisherx
Don't forget chips (even baked) and breads as well. You know there are some popcorns that are freakishly high in protein and in fiber and low in fat that you could probably do without any problems.
I've eliminated the chips too. Gonna KILL my DH if he starts munching and chomping right out of the bag while sitting next to me though .
Quote:
Originally Posted by DirtyMartini
Yeah, I completely agree on cutting out "white" foods and those junky snack bars (like Kashi, Luna, etc). I don't care how much fiber & protein they have in them. They all have 30-50+ grams of added sugar - no thanks! I think they key for some people is to cut out all refined stuff, but to continue small-to-moderate consumption of foods like berries, apricots, whole wheat pasta, ezekiel wraps, homemade pizza with whole wheat crust (or on whole wheat tortillas/pitas), etc...
I haven't had a bar in forever, except this past week when I had to grab one or else go 7 hours without food... I need to be better prepared for emergencies, but I figured eating something with protein was the lesser of the evils, even if it was sugary too. Your suggestions are all good... I am definitely keeping the natural foods (whole wheat, fruit, etc) but dumping the "white" foods.
Quote:
Originally Posted by foodfromafar
The thing that is so bad about late night eating isn't just timing. It's because that is when most people will exceed their calories for the day. If you spread your daily amount over the evening hours, that won't necessarily sabotage your weight loss/maintenance efforts. As long as you are eating the correct number of calories - when doesn't matter as much...
I'm going to work on "saving" more calories for the evening... I could never skip breakfast (nor should I - I can't believe I used to eat my first meal of the day around 1 or 2pm when I was fat - but then it was one giant meal for the rest of the day!)... but I can probably be more comfortable on slightly less in the earlier part of the day.
So much to think about, but I feel like I'm making steps in the right direction. Maybe it's all "simple", but when you're living it, it isn't always that easy to see...
Today's food was pretty much on-target. My goal was 1700 kcal (workout day) and I came in just over, at 1758, with 45% carb, 33% protein (139 g) and 21% fat. Considering that today was a holiday which included a movie (NO popcorn or candy, just the baggie with 12 almonds I had in my purse) and a dinner out (again!) - I ordered mahi mahi grilled, steamed broccoli and a plain baked potato (all with no added butter or oil). I skipped the bread basket and didn't eat a single fry and no dessert. I still got in NEAT too (took DD to an outlet mall and we walked for a few hours since it was so nice outside, and she conned me into spending too much $ on her )...
Today's workout - Stage 4, B1 (yeah, I skipped the last 3B workout cuz I HATED that one!)
Front squat push press -- 2x8 @ 55#, 1x8 @ 60#. How embarrassing to use those little 2.5# plates, but I barely made it to 8 so I couldn't have done 65# yet.
Step-ups -- 3x8 @ 50# (2x25# db's).
1-point Row -- 3x8 @ 80# (2x40# db's). Balance is better on left leg than right, or maybe it's just that I start on the left leg?
Horizontal Wood chop -- 2x8 with blue stretchy band (the cable machine was full, and these are probably better for horizontal anyway since our cable machine only has high or low).
Okay, a few quick comments. I did scan through your older log entries, and I did see a reference to 1650 on an off day (from the calculation). And I know it's been a progression, but you now seem to be doing 1500 / 1700, right? So on your lifting days your just eating over what was recommended for off days.
Oh, and what's an off day? I went through May's entries, and I see:
I'm thinking that perhaps continuing to drop your calories is maybe not your best response. I see two rest days in 25. The book gave three eating levels - what were yours for no workout, active, strenuous? Don't get me wrong, I struggle with this as well. Is a lifting day automatically considered strenuous? I'd think from reading your daily workouts that you might have been better starting to eat at active and strenuous. I suspect you started eating no workout, active - correct?
Of course a lot of this depends on how many days you hit what you're aiming for. I'd try to hit the active / strenuous levels for a couple of weeks and see what happens. Only eat the 1650 on the days you truly do not workout. As well as hitting your protein and fat levels, and the carb advice that others have given you. Hey, it's worth a shot isn't it?
(Of course, god knows, I don't seem to know what works well for me at times, but I have seen in the past that eating too little can be just as bad as eating too much.)
Great attitude G-friend and we are all rooting for you. First of all, do NOT cut carbs!!! Only cut the High Gly carbs (processed ones). Do you understand the difference?
If you ate your 200g or so a day in whole food carbs (fruits and vegetables) I can gaurantee your body will be very happy and full too.
Now deary the things we are saying are your long term goals. How you get to those goals is for you to figure out. Don't make too many changes all at once. My trainer (when I first started with him) took one or two foods a week from me. He took out chips first and then pizza and eventually my pretzels and he made sure that I knew that every single meal I ate included protein as well as carbs. Around 20g protein or more. Perhaps that would be a good way for you to start making the changes. Don't kill yourself is all I am saying here.
And one other thing. Don't look at this as a forever thing. I have added a few of my higher gly carbs back in. I use a whole wheat pita for pizza dough and I eat Kashi cereal for breakfast. I only eat these early in the day or right before or after a workout. Once you purge the poisons from your body, you will be able to listen to what your body is saying. Then you can understand how to eat the "not as great" things to not destroy your overall efforts.
I know it's not a linear journey, but the scale was down again today - 1/2# yesterday and another full 1# today (1.5# total down this week)! At least it's not totally stalled out as it has been, and/or creeping up...
I'm pretty sore (DOMS) from yesterday's 4-A1, so I just walked a little on the tmill (HR never got above 102) for 20 minutes and I'm going to go foam-roll... I do have karate tonight, but that's so hit-or-miss if it's a tough workout or if it's more technical and not sweaty at all...
Quote:
Originally Posted by realcdn
Okay, a few quick comments. I did scan through your older log entries, and I did see a reference to 1650 on an off day (from the calculation). And I know it's been a progression, but you now seem to be doing 1500 / 1700, right? So on your lifting days your just eating over what was recommended for off days.
Oh, and what's an off day? I went through May's entries, and I see:
I'm thinking that perhaps continuing to drop your calories is maybe not your best response. I see two rest days in 25. The book gave three eating levels - what were yours for no workout, active, strenuous? Don't get me wrong, I struggle with this as well. Is a lifting day automatically considered strenuous? I'd think from reading your daily workouts that you might have been better starting to eat at active and strenuous. I suspect you started eating no workout, active - correct?
Of course a lot of this depends on how many days you hit what you're aiming for. I'd try to hit the active / strenuous levels for a couple of weeks and see what happens. Only eat the 1650 on the days you truly do not workout. As well as hitting your protein and fat levels, and the carb advice that others have given you. Hey, it's worth a shot isn't it?
(Of course, god knows, I don't seem to know what works well for me at times, but I have seen in the past that eating too little can be just as bad as eating too much.)
Thanks Anne... ok - first I'm LOL about the soccer question - I'm a soccer mom NOT a player
Yes, I started at 1650/1850. I'd have to dig out the book to say which level I picked, but I know it wasn't the lowest level to start with. I'm not super-active outside of my workouts (although as I mentioned I've been focusing on increasing NEAT since I read Leigh's books)... Now, looking back, I was probably eating above 1650/1850 anyway - I wasn't measuring everything and I wasn't counting little nibbles on the messed-up logic of "I was pretty good today so what's a little bit here or there?". I'm thinking of going back up to 1600/1800, but want to give it a week here first and see how I feel. If I am tired and overly DOMS, I will increase the food.
I only eat the higher kcals on lifting days. Any other workout day (including HIIT) I've been eating at the lower number...
Rest days - GUILTY . You're right. I am redoing my planned schedule (partly based on my summer work schedule which starts June 1). I am planning to take Thursdays (which isn't a karate day) 100% off and REST. If I do some exercise on Thursday, I will take Friday or Saturday off instead. I'm learning that I need rest too . I was counting karate days as rest days, but sometimes they were and sometimes they were anything but!
Quote:
Originally Posted by kfisherx
Great attitude G-friend and we are all rooting for you. First of all, do NOT cut carbs!!! Only cut the High Gly carbs (processed ones). Do you understand the difference?
If you ate your 200g or so a day in whole food carbs (fruits and vegetables) I can gaurantee your body will be very happy and full too.
Now deary the things we are saying are your long term goals. How you get to those goals is for you to figure out. Don't make too many changes all at once. My trainer (when I first started with him) took one or two foods a week from me. He took out chips first and then pizza and eventually my pretzels and he made sure that I knew that every single meal I ate included protein as well as carbs. Around 20g protein or more. Perhaps that would be a good way for you to start making the changes. Don't kill yourself is all I am saying here.
Don't worry Karla - I would never cut all my carbs! I haven't eaten much "white" carbs for a long time, but there were always a few still in there. I'm getting rid of those now. I'm not being extreme, but my biggest issue was more serving size / counting everything. I ate mostly healthy, but at night I'd rationalize and let myself have a "treat" (which would be high Gly usually). No more (or, since extremes don't work well, no more than once/week AFTER I get into the groove better).
Quote:
Originally Posted by kfisherx
And one other thing. Don't look at this as a forever thing. I have added a few of my higher gly carbs back in. I use a whole wheat pita for pizza dough and I eat Kashi cereal for breakfast. I only eat these early in the day or right before or after a workout. Once you purge the poisons from your body, you will be able to listen to what your body is saying. Then you can understand how to eat the "not as great" things to not destroy your overall efforts.
Thanks for the reassurance... I'm a big believer in balance and moderation, but I'm learning that first I have to go a little further (my version of a cut, perhaps?) before I can move on. I did this when I first lost weight 11 years ago (my first WW meeting was 11/7/97, hit my "goal" a year later). I had to be VERY strict, then slowly let things back in a little at a time. I remember bringing a can of soup to a dinner party because I couldn't/wouldn't eat what would be served .
The problem is that what worked when I was fat and sedentary isn't gonna be effective now. Back then, any movement at all was a victory, anything other than fried fast-food was a victory so I saw progress. I'm so much better off now, but it's also gonna take more than just quitting McD's to get me toward my goal! (and no, I don't eat McD's!!!!).
I am going to be strict til this becomes a habit (again) and I learn what my new limits are... I know I can't and won't deprive myself of everything forever. I just slipped a bit too far on my snacking, and I need to tighten up my nutrition and get rid of empty calories. I'm starting from a point of eating healthier than the average American (that's not saying much though, is it?) so now it's all in the little fine-tuning changes. As you know, I've really struggled with finding my maintenance calories - I hope I'm getting closer to figuring that out. Seems likely my actual maintenance calories are higher than I thought, because I was eating more than I admitted!
I agree with Anne, you need more rest. Your lack of rest may be what's hindering your progress. In the HELL Program, Leigh had us working in 10 day cycles that had 2 rest days built in.
__________________ It all starts with the mind, but the thoughts, the intention aren't enough. Action needs to come next. Dream it, believe it, plan it, execute it, celebrate it. - Wendy
Anne great find. I also agree RE the rest. Something else to consider.
Okay now I really am excited because now the pieces of the puzzle seem to be out and ready to put together. I bet we see real cool results over the next few months.
Way to re-evaluate girl. I know you're going to, but be totally mindful of your rest days, because it's a slippery slope to where I'm at!
It's always good to know how high your maintenance calories are. When you think about how much whole food you can have for that many calories, it's really awesome. Cheers to being honest with yourself
Bytsi..........It's just awesome to know you have all these minds working to figure out how to get you going in the right direction (although you totally started that on your own when you vented about your frustrations).
Keep tweaking........You'll find what works and be farther along in the knowledge department than before you started this whold journey!
__________________
"Become better than you used to be, not better than someone else." ~ Leigh Peele
Got groceries today - fun! (Although I mentioned in Jesca's log that I will NOT make the mistake ever again of running to the store on a holiday with my hair wet and no makeup. Guaranteed way to run into everyone I haven't seen in a while and wouldn't want to see unless I was looking good. So I ran into EVERYONE. And I was NOT looking good ).
Got veggies, chopped and bagged 'em. Cooked chicken breasts tonight and they are ready to take in and put on my salad. Nuts and cranberries are measured out and ready to take for my salads too. I forgot the f/f dip though, so I have to run to the store and grab some to try it (but I can survive a day without, I think).
I also got Ezekiel bread - I've heard people talk about it forever, but I never tried it before. Got plain and raisin Ezekiel bread. I have about 300 (312, actually) cals left for after karate, so Ezekiel raisin bread and somethin' with it sounds like a plan! And I purposely saved those 300 calories for later so I wouldn't blow my budgeted food for the day . Oh also got more apples, and I remembered my string cheese (which I had in the fridge already). I'm just working on getting the last remains of processed stuff outta my snacks and giving myself enough choices and variety.
I have to sit down and write out the new schedule (starts next week) but I'm thinking:
M - lift and karate
Tu - some type of cardio
W - lift and karate
Th - REST
Fr - lift (or Saturday) and maybe cardio depending on my mood
Sa - lift if I didn't on Friday, cardio
Su - cardio (HIIT if I haven't done much, SS if I have already gotten enough HIIT).
I left a little room for "life" getting in the way... and IF I do exercise on a Thursday, I will take Friday or Saturday for rest. I promise!!!!
Quote:
Originally Posted by foodfromafar
Bytsi, it sounds like you are making many positive changes and I know you will see the effects soon!
Thanks Pauline
Quote:
Originally Posted by SpacecityPaula
WOW lots of good things in here....
I agree with Anne, you need more rest. Your lack of rest may be what's hindering your progress. In the HELL Program, Leigh had us working in 10 day cycles that had 2 rest days built in.
I'm getting it... I'm just a little slow sometimes
Quote:
Originally Posted by kfisherx
Anne great find. I also agree RE the rest. Something else to consider.
Okay now I really am excited because now the pieces of the puzzle seem to be out and ready to put together. I bet we see real cool results over the next few months.
I hope you're right! Results would be lovely to start seeing
Quote:
Originally Posted by jesca
Way to re-evaluate girl. I know you're going to, but be totally mindful of your rest days, because it's a slippery slope to where I'm at!
It's always good to know how high your maintenance calories are. When you think about how much whole food you can have for that many calories, it's really awesome. Cheers to being honest with yourself
Honest with myself... what a concept
Quote:
Originally Posted by stephanie932
Bytsi..........It's just awesome to know you have all these minds working to figure out how to get you going in the right direction (although you totally started that on your own when you vented about your frustrations).
Keep tweaking........You'll find what works and be farther along in the knowledge department than before you started this whold journey!
I have a whole braintrust here! Between my log and keeping up with other logs, I am definitely getting those puzzle pieces all together. I honestly hadn't noticed the lack of real rest before because karate day was rest day (and sometimes that really was the case if it wasn't a physical class). But no matter what I will REST at least 1 FULL day each week.
If I do ok at 1500/1700, I will try going up to 1600/1800, but I need a couple more days at this level... probably by the end of the week. From there, as long as I see progress, I'll add calories back in (slowly) til I figure out a good maintenance level. Now that I'm REALLY tracking, I can be like Karla and turn my body into a giant science experiment
Question: On a day when I do cardio (SS or HIIT), should I eat low or high calories? I've only eaten the higher number on lift days, but what does everyone else do and what has worked for you???
Got groceries today - fun! (Although I mentioned in Jesca's log that I will NOT make the mistake ever again of running to the store on a holiday with my hair wet and no makeup. Guaranteed way to run into everyone I haven't seen in a while and wouldn't want to see unless I was looking good. So I ran into EVERYONE. And I was NOT looking good ).
You did? I can't find that post, but that sounds like something I would do. I never run into people I don't like except when I'm totally unprepared. There is mall near my old highschool that I could never go into without seeing someone I knew. I've been out of high school over ten years, but when I go to that mall I still freak out a little I didn't really like high school!
Anyhow, it sounds like you're on the right track. Now you just have to follow through. My issue is that i would get all that stuff done and then never pack my lunch or something stupid!
Oh and if you want to come over to my house and prep me for the week that would be super.
Epsi is the real science experiment. And Anne does a good job too. Some of us just enjoy the trouble shooting part of this.
As far as eating. I don't really worry about off and on days and eating. I am way more hungry on rest days than on workout days so eating more on workout days doesn't make sense to my body. I just make sure I average a certain amount per day for each week and eat when it feels right to do so. I might be wrong but I think the eating for work days versus rest days is a level of figuring that you do after you understand what your average daily burn is over a period of time.
. In the evening (which is my worst time for eating) it's sugar or salty... Often it's whatever's in front of me that I can't/shouldn't eat, that someone else has... Sometimes I crave a nice big cheeseburger, and FRIES (probably the salt/fat/carb triple-bad whammy there)...
I think the hardest thing is that my office eats lunch out every day and they are big guys that eat things like burgers and fries and that's all I want. FRIES! Damn them. I find the less I eat them, tho, the easier it is to resist them, however getting to that point is really hard.
Funny but weird.
I feel ya' on the lunch thing. I don't have to deal with it as much at work, but just in general, it is hard to see people eating lotsa crap that tastes good. I agree with getting on a roll though - once I've been "good" for a few days, it's easier to stick with it. Like tonight - no fries from DH's plate or DS's plate. Not one!
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