(I'm testing the feature that updates my blog via email, so bare with me if it turns out badly. I will fix it once I get a chance to log in from home.)
After several false starts to my weight loss endeavor this year, things finally seem to be on track. I've been eating really well for the last 9 days (give or take a few mistakes here and there) and I've been regularly exercising for the past 2 weeks. It's been good times so far and I'm welcoming the constant throb of endorphins throughout my body. I feel better and am in a much better place now that I'm eating right and exercising. You'd think this knowledge alone would help keep me on track, but no. I seem to have a really selective memory when it comes to things like that. I mean, I KNOW that my skin is clearer, I have more energy, I'm regular (lol, TMI?), I'm in a better mood, I feel better about myself, etc when I'm eating right and exercising. Conversely, I also KNOW that I break out like a pre-teen, am sluggish like no other, have irregular bowl movements (come on, you like knowing about my poop!), feel really gross and disgusting about myself and just am in an all around foul mood when I don't eat right and exercise. Despite all that knowledge, I still proceed to subject myself to prolonged bouts of crappy eating and lack of exercise more often than I'd like to admit. It just baffles me, yet I do it to myself over and over again. Ugly cycle, it is. It's been happening a lot over the last 1.5 years since I've had any significant weightloss. I truly believed that I was trying really hard to lose weight and then not seeing results, but now that I honestly look back at my efforts, I'm fairly sure I was sabotaging the weekday progress with horrendous eating on the weekend. I convinced myself that my eating on the weekend wasn't THAT bad and that something must be WRONG with me since I wasn't losing weight. Last weekend, I had one of those 'this-isn't-THAT-bad-for-me' meals and when I logged it in MyFoodDiary, it was over 2,000 calories. Come on guys, that's a meal that I didn't think was THAT BAD for me. Imagine what the calories in a meal I would consider 'really crappy eating' looked like! Denial is such an ugly beast.
So yeah, I'm eyes wide open now. I'm logging all my food, ESPECIALLY on the weekends. Those are my downfall, so it would only be fitting to be EXTRA careful during that time. I'm also trying to do my best to fit in some sort of exercise on 1 of the days during my weekend. So far that's been on Saturdays and hasn't been too bad because I just stop by the gym on my way to work (just like I do on the weekdays). Sunday has been my rest day as far as exercise goes and I usually also eat my 'cheat' meal on Sunday. Yes, I've decided that a 'cheat' meal is necessary for my sanity. The Body for Life program (which is the program I'm vaguely following at this point) emphasizes a 'cheat day' for sanity and metabolic shock, but I find that those 'cheat days' can really do some damage and unravel all my hard work for the week, so I am containing it to just 1 'cheat' meal. In that meal, I will eat whatever I want, within reason. The content can be anything, but I must really try not go to overboard with the portion sizes. Last weekend, the portion size was what turned that 'cheat' meal into a 2,000+ meal. Must work on that this weekend. Baby steps, folks. Baby steps.
I really like the Body for Life meal plans because they emphasize whole foods mostly. Typically, the meals are made from scratch from naturally occuring items and there's not much processed junk in the recommended foods list. I've been trying to incorporate more of a 'clean eating' type of lifestyle into my life because I found that I was eating a lot of junk that had ingredients that I had never heard of in my life. That just can't be good. If we look back in time to the days when our ancestors weren't horrendously overrun with obesity and diseases caused by obesity, what was everyone eating? Whole foods that could be grown from the earth or animals that were raised in their natural environment. Ideally, we should all grown our own food and raise our own livestock, but that's just crazy talk in this day and age. I'll settle for eating fresh salads and home-cooked meals instead of frozen foods and boxed dinners. (Note: I have been drinking protein shakes though, which are processed I suppose, but I have to get more protein in somehow! I'm a hypocrit, I know. Sorry to disappoint.)
As far as exercise goes, I've been *trying* to do at least 30 minutes of cardio, 3 times a week and then lift weights 3 times per week. I try to make each cardio session a different exercise (elliptical one day, running one day and an aerobics class the last day) just to keep my body guessing and keep my mind interested. Must change things up often or else I get insanely bored with my cardio routine. This past fall I had a lot of fun running outside for my half-marathon training, but I'm over that now. I'm inside on the machines now and have just REALLY discovered the StairMaster machine. I mean, I always knew it was there, but just never paid much attention to it. This week I decided to try it since I had never attempted it before.
I only lasted 10 minutes before I had to concede defeat. =\
That's fine, at least I tried. My calves are KILLING me today because of it, but I welcome the challenge. I am going to attempt it again tomorrow morning and see if I can make it for 15 minutes, if not longer. Seems like a good machine to give me a J.Lo booty, which we all know every woman wants. LOL!
As far as weight lifting goes, I've been alternating between full body circuit training and old-fashioned weight lifting by muscle group. Last week was 2 different full body circuit training session and this week I'm lifting upper-body today and lower-body/abs on Friday. I also like to keep things interesting in that aspect because, yeah, I have a short attention span unless it's something I LOVE. And, no, I do not LOVE exercising. I have a love-hate relationship with exercise. I love how it makes me feel and how it changes my body, but I HATE the actual act of doing it. It is tiring and… hard. LOL. Keep it interesting, ya'll!
I'm so glad I finally feel like I have my groove back. I feel like I did back in 2006 when I lost the last 20 lbs of my 50 lb weightloss so far. Hopefully I can dispose of another 20 lbs before my sister's wedding in June. That is my goal - anything more than that is a blessing.
Keep on truckin' folks!
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