An Experimental Break

I just realized how long it has been since my last post. I haven't posted, probably because I haven't really been following the regimen I so strategically set up for myself. A lot has been going on these past few weeks. Holidays, schedules, gatherings, work and night school. When I have that much going on I tend to throw my hands up in the air and say 'forget it all' when it comes to my diet, and I go about my business... then I weigh in a few weeks later and regret that decision. You see the vicious cycle yet?

I still weigh the exact same. My measurements haven't changed either. I can definitely see more definition in my legs and arms from working out, so at least there's ONE result from all this... I've basically gotten too frustrated with the idea of counting calories. It's a joke actually. I hit my limit after my lunch almost every day, so I work out to be able to eat dinner... which allows me 300 calories. If you're anything like me, that's nearly impossible to do without still feeling hungry.

I'm a very picky eater and need a lot of variety... and variety isn't a close friend of Mr. Diet. So, yeah... finding an eating routine is VERY hard for me. I like change way too much, and shudder at the thought of eating the same thing for 5 days in a row...

One other problem has been my night class schedule. I get off work at 4:30 and race through town to get to class by 5:00 -- no time for food. Class starts at 5:00 and goes til 9:30... we get a 20 minute break around 7:00. I know I could bring something to eat, and probably should, but I hate eating food that has been sitting in a car or a fridge getting soggy or stale... I'm kinda OCD about fresh food... and there's not enough time to go grab something fresh from a store, so I don't eat until I get home.... around 10:00 p.m. -- and I'm starving and gorging on all kinds of random things, and I end up overeating. BAH.

Luckily class is only 10 weeks long and I'm nearing the end of week 3. I've decided the calorie counting is going to be temporarily put on hold, and I'm going to just make healthy choices and stop counting calories for the remainder of class, and continue to exercise whenever the opportunity is present.

It's kind of like an experimental diet break, with the continuation of exercise... and it should be interesting to see if it results in a loss or gain. Sometimes I lose more weight when I'm not thinking about it so much.

making the Switch - Part 2

So a few other 'issues' of mine are LUNCH and DINNER. Breakfast is always a must, and any nutritionist will say so, but it packs on about 400 calories to my day.

Then comes lunchtime. I usually make pretty decent choices for lunch - most of the time it being a Subway 6 inch with baked lays. (Big issue is the chips, I know they're baked but they add 130 calories to my day, but I need something to munch on until my lunch break arrives. BOO) By lunchtime, without a workout in, I'm up to 800 or 900 calories, leaving me with only 300 calories left for dinner.

In reality, dinner is the biggest meal I make and has the highest calories, and 300 calories is just plain unrealistic. By the end of the day, if I've had a workout, my hunger has become a wild ravenous beast, and it needs the comfort of food... not a little 300 calorie snack. There's just no way I could eat 300 calories and be satisfied. Dinner is my favorite part of the evening, so something needed to change to allow this to still happen...

SWITCH #2 - Lunch

I will be attempting to go from eating a BIG lunch...

... to eating a bowl of cereal. {Kinda like the Special K diet}

Hopefully this low-calorie, mid-day switch will allow me more calories in the evening, which will keep me from going over my daily limit. This could be ESPECIALLY effective on days I am NOT working out. Those days are so hard to avoid eating over 1200 calories... are ya kidding me??

I'll let you guys know how this goes.

Goals for This Week

Okay, after the dieting disaster that was this weekend, I've decided to take this thing seriously. This week, I'm making some food and fitness goals for myself... thought that might be an easier way to stay on track.

Fitness Goals:

• Monday: Run 2.5 miles outside at lunch. 1 mile walk in the evening.

• Tuesday: GYM day: 35 minutes cardio and  25 minutes free weights.

• Wednesday: Run 2.5 miles outside at lunch.

• Thursday: GYM day: 35 minutes cardio and  25 minutes free weights.

• Friday: Rest.

• Saturday: Short run by the beach? Or a bike ride? Must do SOMETHING.

• Sunday: Rest.

FOOD Goals:

• No eating after 7:30 p.m.

• No snacks, unless it's a vegetable or fruit.

• Do NOT go over my calorie limit any day this week.

• Continue to make healthy choices. NO Sugar!!!

Making the Switch - Part 1

So throughout this blog, I will be posting about changes in my eating habits.
I have alot of daily eating rituals that I want to document and eventually change or eliminate. Documenting them on this blog will be a daily reminder of all the things I used to do that kept me from being the healthy person I wanted to be.

Switch #1: afternoon pick-me-up

OLD: Starbucks Iced Caramel Macchiato {nonfat}

270 calories

NEW: Starbucks Iced Passion tea, 1/2 the sweetner

80 calories

calories saved: 190

{that's equivalent to 17 minutes on the elliptical, in ONE drink!}