Tonight at work, I decided to chronicle the food temptations that one suffers during a shift as a server. Now, keep in mind, that restaurants obviously vary greatly in the flexibility that is given to employees and afforded by management, but this is my story, and my temptations. This is one shift, from 5pm until 10:20pm.
Hope you enjoy!
It all started when I put my work shirt on and noticed that it was tight again in my bicep area. That was depressing. I was starting to feel slightly thinner, but once again I was greeted with disappointment. It wasn't a good way to begin a shift.
5:28pm One of the owners (we will call her Marie) rounded the corner of the service alley with a togo container in her hand. "I've got some cookies if anyone wants them" She pops the top and tosses the box casually onto the countertop. The Styrofoam lid opens to reveal 'fingerprint kiss cookies' (the ones with the Hersey's kiss baked into the middle). "I just don't like them as much as the ones I've been eating. I guess I've gone to the store three different times trying these things out . . "she says with an unsatisfied huff.
I glance up to at her, with the instinctive reaction to ask her what in the world could be wrong with cookie that has an actual Hershey's kiss baked into it. That is fool proof.
Pride stops me. Marie weighs about 105lbs, soaking wet . . with rocks in her pocket. If I defend the cookies she may secretly smirk to herself that someone as heavy as myself, is obviously on good terms with all cookies. I can't let that happen. I have myself and my diet to consider. As the other servers gobble up her offering, I just shake my head politely 'no'. I am not going to let her talk me into making a fool of myself, skinny people are mean like that.
One temptation down.
6:02pm The dinner bread stick basket is put out. These signature bread sticks are actually pizza dough that is rolled out and sprinkled with a garlic/herb blend. They are sent through the pizza oven and sliced to resemble the bread stick shape. They are given away as complimentary to our dining guests.
I set the warmer up and add the bread sticks to the basket (that will be kept full all night). Naturally, the serving staff meanders over to grab one or two as I work. "Gosh how I love fresh bread, don't you?" Sherbie (one of the other servers) giggles as she stuffs a second bread stick into her mouth. I nod helplessly and watch her chew.
The bread sticks are good. I have tasted them and I remember it. As Sherbie continues munching, I think back to the time where I took three bread sticks and dipped them into fresh Alfredo sauce. It seems like a long time ago now, and I can no longer recall the day,but the memories are there.
Every day when I face the bread sticks, I have the memories. They can't take those away from me.
The second temptation is past.
7:17pm Our small dinner rush is here. A little action is going on. Drinks are poured at the bar, orders are taken for food, plates are cleared, and we are delightfully busy for a time. It makes me smile that I am serving food instead of staring at it. By 7:45, the action has abated somewhat . .
"Here ya go girls and boys", our chef (a genuine Southern Redneck Italian guy) puts the 'mistakes' from the rush up into the hot window. Tonight it is a large pizza (with pepperoni, ham, and Italian sausage), an order of mozzarella sticks, and a basket of french fries.
As I watch, my fellow servers descend upon the offered feast. They have no pride these people. Utensils are not used, plates are unnecessary.
Marie comes up "save a piece for me!", she laughs and pushes through the crowd. In the commotion, she jabs her angular, thin elbow into one of my fat rolls. For a moment, we look at each other in acknowledgment of the unexpected contact. "This hallway sure is tight" she offers, as though it were an apology. It's a standard size hallway, we both know that. Obviously it's yet another passive way of calling me fat. I'm used to it, so I don't respond. I told you that is how skinny people are.
As Marie obtains her piece of pizza, she leans against the counter to savor the taste of victory. She cradles the slice in her hand with all the familiarity of an old lover. It relaxes and loses its form, in order to mold into her palm.
There is no friction in this relationship between Marie and her pizza. She doesn't worry that it will make her heavy, she isnt' consumed about the nutritional data in the pizza's dna, or if this moment of pleasure will cause her unnecessary pain in the future.
This 'friends with benefits' scenario with the pizza does not bind Marie. She won't have to cut back on something else because she ate this pizza; there will be no additional cardio as payment for the indulgence. There are no strings here.
And as Marie picks up another slice, I can see that she does so without conscience. There is no guilt. She can't even feel guilty anymore.
In a way, I almost feel sorry for Marie . . . as I pass the third temptation of the evening.
10:14pm I worked my hindend off to finish this evening in record time. Cleaned my section, rolled silver, and swept. I am getting hungry. It's been a long night, and a lot of temptation.
I made it through a lot. Food thrown in my path from every direction, even supposed 'friends' offering me fattening food, and skinny people making passive/aggressive statements to ridicule me.
I could chronicle the other temptations, but I'm not out to make myself a hero. I am just one person giving up the pleasure of the moment, for the belief that discretion today will result in victory tomorrow. Perhaps not tomorrow in the literal sense, but some tomorrow.
Some day I will see the fruits of my labor . . but in the meantime, there is always the temptations.
Disclaimer Keep in mind that this is tongue-in-cheek humor. It is meant to be funny, or at least my pathetic attempt at it. All the 'temptations' that I listed DID actually happen tonight at work, though I did take poetic license in relating the events surrounding them.
__________________
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If you weren't born drop dead gorgeous, be thankful for the opportunity to develop character first.
I will give 2 points to anyone that actually reads that whole thing I just wrote LOL
Sorry, I didn't intend for it to be so long
Okay, today I didn't do any lifting, but I did help paint my brother's new house for 4 hours. WOW that is work! I was shaking from hunger, literally.
Food
Hot tea x2 (100)
ensure (230)
2 crunchy fresco tacos, and one soft fresco taco (600)
one bread stick (100)
3 soft fresco tacos (600)
16 oz of milk (240)
Calories: 1870 Protein: 90 grams
Actually, according to Taco Bell nutritional info, lunch was 480 cals and dinner was 540, but I figured them both at 600, because I assumed the nutritional information would be underestimated.
Not the best choices today, and I was REALLY hungry. Also I did a lot of work at my brother's house and then went to work.
I was all tuckered out
__________________
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If you weren't born drop dead gorgeous, be thankful for the opportunity to develop character first.
If you need extra income, you can always consider a job as a humor writer. . . . .I can picture your stuff as one of those funny columns in the Life section of the paper. Perfect.
Just a thought after following your food tracking. . . . .do you not like to cook? It seems that every time you list "real" food, it's always store food. Does working in food service make you not want to deal with it at home? Curious. . . .
And one other thought. . .no offense intended. . . .Why do you always add calories to things to be "safe"? My guess is you don't eat as much as you think you do. You can measure the teaspoons of CoffeeMate, for example, rather than just estimating. . . . .you might end up realizing you could eat an extra snack a day.
Yes, so did I.. even was about 1/3rd into it when I decided I realllly had to go NOW as otherwise I'd be late for the gym (it closes early in summer time) ... and it's the first thing on the forum I'm reading after coming back home..
You are MY hero girl for surviving all these temptation.. all I have to survive is the supermarket food & there aren't wafts of freshly prepared saliva-inducing foods here.. those are irresistable!
Can't you bribe the cook into making chicken fingers for you?
I also loved your tale of temptations. Those skinny people you work with are so mean!
I'm curious too about your reasoning for adding calories to be "safe". I suppose when you have a scale it's different, but when I didn't weight food, I measured what I could to be as close as possible. I also trust the nutritional information posted at restaurants to be as accurate as I would be when weighing and measuring food I made for myself. Just my thoughts.
I also loved your tale of temptations. Those skinny people you work with are so mean!
I'm curious too about your reasoning for adding calories to be "safe". I suppose when you have a scale it's different, but when I didn't weight food, I measured what I could to be as close as possible. I also trust the nutritional information posted at restaurants to be as accurate as I would be when weighing and measuring food I made for myself. Just my thoughts.
Unfortunately, that isn't true .. the nutritional info being correct.
When they investigated how many calories the meals listed actually had, they found underestimations of up to 50% ! I'm sure MissJane is referring to this!
Loved the story! I betcha Marie also doesn't have that much endurance or overall strength. So she can gobble all the pizza and cookies she wants, but she'll never be awesome like us gals here. WTG on resisting those temptations.
As for the calorie logging, I agree with you. I also overestimate what I consume on a daily basis for 2 reasons: 1.) a lot of people tend to sneak in extra bites of food and don't always track it (well, folks such as myself who love to snack) and 2.) even when you're weighing food, there will always be variables that make calorie and macros counting more of a guesstimate than an accurate measure.
And I never trust restaurant nutrition info, either. I always presume that I'm consuming more calories, fat, sodium, etc. dining out than I would eating home cooked meals that I portioned myself. Restaurant cooks tend to put more salt, cook with more fat, and serve bigger portions overall than I would at home.
Unfortunately, that isn't true .. the nutritional info being correct.
When they investigated how many calories the meals listed actually had, they found underestimations of up to 50% ! I'm sure MissJane is referring to this!
Yes....I read your reply wrong the first time. Don't trust what they tell you because it could be WAY low......
At least some restaurants have nutrition facts posted and you can somewhat guestimate, but others don't, like TGIF's.
I think it's difficult to eat out at this time, and I avoid it when possible. It's not easy to make a wise choice at most restaurants. I usually just have a burger (as I love them) and know I'm eating a crapload of calories. I rather eat something I truly enjoy than a blah old salad.
I want my 2 points too! Loved your temptation story. Congrats on resisting! You're right--it's better in the long run.
My cubicle neighbor is a bit like Marie in that she's a stick and chows down whenever we have goodies here at work (she usually has two slices of cake at the various birthday parties). But she runs, bikes, does the sweaty kind of yoga, etc., so I can't shake my fist and curse fate too much.
ETA: I agree on restaurants often underestimating their calorie count--you never know how much oil/butter/whatever one chef is going to use vs. another. But given your active job, I still wouldn't be surprised if you're consuming less than you think you are (or rather, that your deficit is larger than you think it is). I'll be curious to see how your food weighs once you have your scale!
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They call me Amanda, that being my real name, and "They" being people who know me in person as I don't go around introducing myself in real life as "scribess." 'Cause that would just be strange.
Maybe. Then again, I'm apparently not as critical about my caloric intake and all that as most people here seem to be. For some reason, I don't much feel like I fit in here. A common thought for me, but ... ah well.
Love the temptation description... but I kinda hate Marie a little bit
She is very hateable. Thin, long legged natural blonde, perfect teeth . . I am getting nauseous just thinking about it.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Espi
Yes, so did I.. even was about 1/3rd into it when I decided I realllly had to go NOW as otherwise I'd be late for the gym (it closes early in summer time) ... and it's the first thing on the forum I'm reading after coming back home..
You are MY hero girl for surviving all these temptation.. all I have to survive is the supermarket food & there aren't wafts of freshly prepared saliva-inducing foods here.. those are irresistable!
Can't you bribe the cook into making chicken fingers for you?
Glad you enjoyed it. Yes, I probably could bribe the cook. The trouble with cooks is they will cook things their way . . no matter what you tell them.
Quote:
Originally Posted by ZeeSparrow
I also loved your tale of temptations. Those skinny people you work with are so mean!
They are mean because it's allowed under law, if the Judiciary branch of government worked like it was suppose to, there were be laws in place that would protect those with higher BMI.
Quote:
Originally Posted by NYC_Native
Loved the story! I betcha Marie also doesn't have that much endurance or overall strength. So she can gobble all the pizza and cookies she wants, but she'll never be awesome like us gals here. WTG on resisting those temptations.
And I never trust restaurant nutrition info, either.
I imagine you are correct about Marie actually, she is thin but doesn't really look that 'in shape'. I guess I could beat her up. That does make me feel better.
Quote:
Originally Posted by scribess
I want my 2 points too! Loved your temptation story. Congrats on resisting! You're right--it's better in the long run.
ETA: I agree on restaurants often underestimating their calorie count--you never know how much oil/butter/whatever one chef is going to use vs. another. But given your active job, I still wouldn't be surprised if you're consuming less than you think you are (or rather, that your deficit is larger than you think it is). I'll be curious to see how your food weighs once you have your scale!
+2 points
I am very curious about what the scale reveals (when I finally get it). I have always overestimated if anything, so I highly doubt that my calories are going to turn out to be figured too low. ( I could be wrong though)
Quote:
Originally Posted by LancelotsLover
If you need extra income, you can always consider a job as a humor writer. . . . .I can picture your stuff as one of those funny columns in the Life section of the paper. Perfect.
Just a thought after following your food tracking. . . . .do you not like to cook? It seems that every time you list "real" food, it's always store food. Does working in food service make you not want to deal with it at home? Curious. . . .
And one other thought. . .no offense intended. . . .Why do you always add calories to things to be "safe"? My guess is you don't eat as much as you think you do. You can measure the teaspoons of CoffeeMate, for example, rather than just estimating. . . . .you might end up realizing you could eat an extra snack a day.
P.S. I want my 2 points!!!
mmm, a humor writer, that is an interesting idea. Thank you
Okay, I thought for a whole day about your statement: It seems that every time you list "real" food, it's always store food. And how to answer that question.
I didn't even realize that before. The reason that my food tends to be bought from somewhere is that I put off eating until I 'have' to. In other words, I'll put it off until I think, 'okay, I have to be at work in 30 minutes, I really have to eat something'
I have something of an antagonistic relationship with food and honestly I dread eating most of the time. I think that is why I drink a lot of hot tea and milk. Those are fillers I use in the place of eating.
I actually love to cook. I am a very good baker (and actually have sold a lot of baked items, and have a loyal following) BUT I tend to cook things that I don't like to eat. That is probably why I bake a lot . . I don't really like sweets. LOL.
I am a little paranoid about underestimating calories. You hear so often how "I thought I was eating 1200 cals a day, and turns out I was eating over 2000" . . that it just has me to where I am super conscious of everything I put in my mouth. I don't want to be putting all this effort forth, and sabotaging myself.
Still in all I must not be doing something right, I STILL haven't lost any weight (in a month) LOL.
**today's log in the next post, this one is long enough already!**
__________________
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If you weren't born drop dead gorgeous, be thankful for the opportunity to develop character first.
Okay if I am not in a deficit today . . . I am in real trouble!
First off, . . a workout!
Workout A6 of Stage 1
Squats
3x10x10e
Push ups
3x10
Seated Row
3x10x50
Step Ups
3x10x10e
Prone Jackknife
3x12
Food:
hot tea x2 (100)
coffee with 2% milk (20)
Grilled Chix from Chic-fil-a (400)
post w/o shake (370)
2 soft tacos fresco style (650)
8 boiled peanuts (50?)
Calories 1590 Protein: 120?
Notes:
~ Today was the longest day ever,partly because of starting out tired. Between working as a server, doing the interviews, and helping my brother move into his new house, I have slept a total of 12 hours in the last 3 days. (slept 3 hours last night)
~This morning, I was up at 7 am, and though tired everything was going fairly well, until I spilled a cup of fresh (and VERY hot coffee) right into my lap. It hurt so freakin bad! I scorched places that I don't even want to think about.
~After that, I came back home, and went straight to working out, cause I knew if I didn't I would lose my gumption. The workout went okay, but it wasn't a day to set a new PR with anything.
~Then I went to work and worked from 5-10, and then headed over to my brother's new house to help them paint. We worked on that until about 1:30am, and then I drove home.
~I got home a little after 2am
And like I said, between low calories, working out, working and painting, I DARN well better be in a deficit today.
I am going to go to bed now and dream about the day when I lose a pound. LOL
__________________
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If you weren't born drop dead gorgeous, be thankful for the opportunity to develop character first.
When I read over your log from earlier today, I noticed you didn't have much sleep over the last few days... And I was wondering if that is fairly standard for you. Lack of rest/sleep can also stall weight loss.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Katydid77
She is very hateable. Thin, long legged natural blonde, perfect teeth . . I am getting nauseous just thinking about it.
To be long and leggy... I'm small (5'1"), so that's like chasing after unicorns for me. *"The Impossible Dream" from Man of La Mancha comes on*
When I read over your log from earlier today, I noticed you didn't have much sleep over the last few days... And I was wondering if that is fairly standard for you. Lack of rest/sleep can also stall weight loss.
x2. Leigh Peele really emphasizes the importance of sleep. It's hyoooge.
__________________
They call me Amanda, that being my real name, and "They" being people who know me in person as I don't go around introducing myself in real life as "scribess." 'Cause that would just be strange.
When I read over your log from earlier today, I noticed you didn't have much sleep over the last few days... And I was wondering if that is fairly standard for you. Lack of rest/sleep can also stall weight loss.
Yeah, I got through bouts of little sleep, but this week has definitely been the exception for this month. Everything just sort of piled up.
Last night, after I wrote my log on here, I took 1 tylenol pm, and one melatonin and went to bed. Slept really good for about 9 hours, so very good recovery time
No exercise today, but helped on the house a bit, and of course worked a serving shift that was about 7 hours.
Food: (this is going to look stupid and pathetic)
hot tea 50
protein shake 250
6 tacos fresco style (1250)
Notes:
~ I know, I know, ridiculous. I didn't mean for that to happen, but I had to stop somewhere to eat on the way to work and tacos were on the way THEN my parents called me as I was getting off and said they were going to get food and I said "pick me up something from wherever you go"
Naturally, they picked Taco Bell.
Calories: 1550 Protein: 85
I can see where my protein is suffering this week, because i have been settling for low calorie instead of the healthiest choices.
That will change next week.
** Monday is my one month weigh-in and measurements. I am nervous about it, because as of last monday zero weight loss. We shall see, I suppose.
If Monday yields no results I suppose I will have to take a long hard look. I might try the Rapid Weight Loss thing that several people are doing right now. I would have to study it though, there is no way I can afford to buy a book or anything right now.
__________________
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If you weren't born drop dead gorgeous, be thankful for the opportunity to develop character first.
Don't worry about yesterday's Taco Bell meal. All in all, it's one minor hiccup along the way. But at least you got a good night's sleep! Keep at it, because your body really needs it, esp. since you're putting in the workouts and have a physically demanding job.
Did more thinking, and because your meals are usually from outside or are pre-packaged, their sodium content might also be affecting your weight. Maybe not by much, but it's still a contributing factor. My personal opinion here is that, even though I know you're very anxious to move the scale downward, is to take it easy. I've found that when I tried getting uber-aggressive about weight loss, it just created more stress, and the scale didn't budge in the end. So please hang in there!!
At least you're eating the Al Fresco style tacos. I think that's a good choice if you are going to eat there.
I used to do the same thing, forgetting to think about meals until I was starving. My husband helped me get out of that habit some, because he's the type to ask at breakfast, "what's the plan for dinner?" and I would get frustrated and say "I just ate breakfast, who's thinking about dinner?" But slowly I have begun to plan ahead more, and take some meat out of the freezer in the morning. It helps to buy a lot of meat on sale and keep it in meal-sized portions in the freezer.
Also, I make a lot of something when I do cook, so I have leftovers to eat the next day.
It's a process. . . . .takes time. Don't worry, you're doing fine, and the fact that you're aware of what you eat is more than half the battle!
I usually plan tomorrow's dinner after eating todays. In fact today I just realised that I haven't taken anything out, so I will go and do so before going to bed. I just haven't decided what it will be...
Joyce ~ I haven't been watching sodium at all actually. I have considered that, although I have read articles that say no matter what your sodium intake, as long as you are consistent, it should iron itself out.
I dunno. At the moment, I am only watching calories, protein, and trying to keep an eye out for fiber. Things I haven't been watching are sodium and carbs. With the carbs, I assumed if I focused on protein, it would naturally balance out the carbs.
We shall see . ..
Food:
hot tea x3 (150)
milk (240)
eggs (180)
1/2 of one side of a lox bagel (200)
fiber one bar (180)
footlong chix sub (800)
Calories: 1750 Protein: 130ish
Notes:
~ the eggs are the boil-in-bag scrambled ones from brunch
~ I am mildly proud of myself because brother bought everyone dinner tonight (we were painting his house again) and got pizzas from Pizza Hut. I was STARVING and I knew that I would way overeat on them, so I stopped at Subway and got the grilled chicken sub. I ate the whole thing. LOL
~My calories went a bit higher than I wanted for today (hoping to stay around 1500), but all things considered not too bad.
~Lox and bagel is one of my favorite foods in the world. It was a semi-treat for me today. I made it myself (off the brunch), so I really limited the amount of cream cheese and made sure the piece of bagel was on the small side. I loved it though
Tomorrow is the weigh in/measurement day. I almost dread it.
__________________
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If you weren't born drop dead gorgeous, be thankful for the opportunity to develop character first.
Saw you wanted to do RFL/PSMF w/o the book.. you'd better scratch that idea double QUICK for 3 reasons
1 you can't do it properly w/o the book (there's tons of e-books around so getting for free it isn't a problem at all, you may want to pay the author later for a hard copy)
2 your work load is waaaaaaaay too high to stomach this
3 your eating habits are far from ideal.. and RFL calls for REAL FOOD (not shakes or liquids!!!!)
First month weigh in/measurements On the NROL4W
starting weight: 160.0
ending weight: 159.0
Starting measurements: (all in inches)
Neck: 14 1/2
Right Bicep (relaxed): 12 1/2
Bust: 42 1/4
Under Bust: 34 1/2
Hips: 43 1/4
Right Thigh: 24
Ending measurements:
Neck: 14 1/2
Right Bicep: 12 3/4
Bust: 42
Under Bust: 34
Waist: 34
Hips: 43
Right Thigh: 24 1/2
The Synopsis:
I lost one pound, a half inch off of my under bust and waist, and a quarter inch off of my hips and bust.
I gained a quarter inch on my bicep and a half inch on my right thigh.
If you add it all up, it is one pound and 1 1/2 inches lost, then 3/4 inch gained.
Notes:
Honestly my biggest disappointment about this first month is that I don't FEEL any thinner, or like I am losing weight. I knew my shirts were getting tighter on my bicep area, and I am actually shocked that the amount isn't greater. I feel fatter when I put my clothes on than I did when I started.
The thing I liked the most about this month is the time spent in the gym and feeling like I am getting stronger. Finding out what my body can do, and making strides in getting better form and such.
At the end of the day, I don't know how to interpret those numbers . . .
Ponderings:
*Do the bicep and thigh gains mean that I am building muscle?
*Are the 1/2 inch and 1/4 inch differences enough to indicate positive developments, or are those amounts small enough to where they are still in the 'margin of error' range?
*Does this mean that the exercise is okay, but I am simply going to have to overhaul my diet?
What I am considering doing:
*Going to lifting 2x a week (instead of 3) and adding two days of cardio
*Taking the calorie counts down from 1750 and 1900, to 1500 and 1700 calories per day
*Make my protein goal as important as my calorie goal.
*Cut out almost all prepackaged food, and eat more traditional 'good' foods like turkey, beans, and such . . .
I am going to post this log in the Fat Loss Troubleshooting thread, as a follow up to my '3 weeks and no loss' post.
__________________
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If you weren't born drop dead gorgeous, be thankful for the opportunity to develop character first.
Your ideas sound good. I'm quite surprised you're not more hungry on that much milk but hey, if that works for you.
After calories , protein is king. Like I wrote in Annette's log, they've discovered that monkeys will automatically overeat on foods that are protein-poor but carb- and/or fat-rich in order to get their protein quota. People that don't want to spend money on lean protein sources probably end up doing the very same thing.
Gaining biceps/thigh circumference can be 2 things: either real muscle gains and/or more water retention due to muscle soreness. It most definitely won't be fat..
Saw you wanted to do RFL/PSMF w/o the book.. you'd better scratch that idea double QUICK for 3 reasons
1 you can't do it properly w/o the book (there's tons of e-books around so getting for free it isn't a problem at all, you may want to pay the author later for a hard copy)
2 your work load is waaaaaaaay too high to stomach this
3 your eating habits are far from ideal.. and RFL calls for REAL FOOD (not shakes or liquids!!!!)
Point #1 You are right, I should look into that. Ebooks are amazing
Point #2 I was actually thinking this last night.
Point #3 True dat be hommie Shakes and liquids do seem to be a staple at the moment. lol
__________________
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If you weren't born drop dead gorgeous, be thankful for the opportunity to develop character first.
Maybe point 3 isn't that important for you, since you have always drunk so much milk and don't feel bad on it. Most people looking for an easy 'lose weight quickly diet' that reach for shakes will go back to the way they used to eat before. THat's why there's so much emphasis on solid foods.
If that was never the way you ate .. then it's not as important.
Point 2 though, having a very heavy work load is something to not be taken lightly. I can do 1000 kcal days on near-complete rest days where I don't need to go anywhere nor do much at all outside perhaps packing up a few parcels. Completely different from how hectic your job is.
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