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6846. arkymalarky - 4/5/2007 3:35:27 PM Getupoffit, Ulgine, and let's go! 6847. arkymalarky - 4/5/2007 3:50:50 PM Okay. Day one.
After stripping every shred, including rings, trimming my toenails, peeing, spitting, and blowing my nose, I weigh 157 lbs. This isn't true confessions time for everybody, it's just my blog/diary part, so don't feel like you need to chime in with your own weight, but go ahead if you want.
My general "diet" will be cereal with 1% milk (cold or hot) with a max of 200 calories. I will have orange juice at 110 calories, and coffee with 5tbsp of Lite Coffeemate at 50 calories (cutting the cream/creamer in my coffee is my biggest sacrifice--I like strong coffee with lots of cream, no sugar). I will have one chocolate square at 60 calories and one granola bar before lunch at 150 calories. I will take two fiber tablets a day at 20 calories, and plan to have water and tea at hand at all times--0 calories. I will have one can of low-sodium V-8 a day at 30 calories, and one piece of fresh fruit (? calories--usually an apple). I will have Slimfast for lunch while at work and a caloric equivalent at home. For my "main meal," whether supper or lunch, I put a calorie limit of 450. Most frozen dinners (Kashi ones are great, but fairly high carb with the grains) are around 350. For an evening snack, if I can't stand it, I eat a tablespoon of peanutbutter and drink a cup of milk at 200 calories.
I plan to keep a diary of everything I eat and maintain a daily calorie count that doesn't exceed 1500.
I'm taking one multivitamin for people over 50, even though I'm not over 50.
To start, my exercise goal is to do one set (is a set 8-10 reps? it didn't say) of the "core" calisthenics in the link I posted and 1/2 to 1 mile on the treadmill at 2-2.5mph. I'll see how that goes today and do the doctor thing tomorrow morning. This morning I followed the breakfast, which I generally do anyway, and I'm adding fiber to the max and some prunes/prune juice along with lots more water and tea to try to clean out my system somewhat, since I'm going to be home the next four days.
Our luckiest feature where we live is FANTASTIC water, so I can drink gobs of it and take it to work for tea and water. 6848. arkymalarky - 4/5/2007 4:00:33 PM I like grab-and-go stuff, especially the Tropicana fresh orange juice single-serve cartons. I also like the 100 calorie packs of Doritos. Bob loves to measure his stuff ahead of time and puts them in the new little Glad containers (with the blue tops). He measures out his oatmeal for every day, with prunes, nuts, and Splenda. He loves Splenda, but I know Judith for one, has had major problems trying to use it. I don't set out to, but I don't have to avoid it, and Bob doesn't eat all the stuff he used to with a Splenda replacement. IOW, he doesn't drink any soda, eat sweets, etc. He also eats lots of the Kashi 7-grain cereal when he can get it--the one with no sweetener in it. He's having to go to Little Rock for it now. He's very routine, and eats a lot of the same things, but he loves them. For diabetics it's all about the carbs, so he's limited to a low-carb diet, but he hardly takes in any fat or meat at all--which is strange, because he's always been (and still is) such a meat lover. And between oatmeal and Kashi, he eats a lot of whole grains. No bread, though, at all. He loves mixing yogurt (Splenda-sweetened Lite85) with Kashi. He loves tomato anything, and drinks lots of V-8. 6849. Wombat - 4/5/2007 4:31:20 PM I try and use as little "diet" food as possible, the main exception being diet Coke or Pepsi. I am not going to ruin the taste of my morning coffee by substituting Splenda or Equal (cannot do saccharine) for 2 teaspoons of turbinado sugar (30-40 calories, at most).
I also eschew most lo-fat dairy products (exceptions 1% milk when I have cereal, and Neuchatel cheese for cream cheese with my bagel and lox. 6850. arkymalarky - 4/5/2007 4:42:16 PM I'm generally the same wrt diet, but I've found "Lite" stuff that doesn't substitute but simply contains less of some things (Lite peanutbutter, for instance) suits me as well--and after a time tastes better--than the regular stuff. I read labels for that, though.
I also don't like subbing what I really really like and feeling deprived. That works against me in the long run. Out of necessity Bob uses Splenda for everything and says he likes it as well as sugar and can't taste the difference. There are some other "natural" sweeteners out he hasn't tried, or at least not more than once. One is Stevia, which someone recommended to him.
Mose swears by the "Zero" sodas, but I'm better off not to have them at all, and if I do want a soda I want "real" Coke or Dr. Pepper or Sierra Mist. Bob drinks unsweetened tea wherever we eat out and whatever it is we're eating. 6851. arkymalarky - 4/5/2007 4:44:33 PM Eating out is the big issue, really, especially when we're busy. And Judith can attest to the fact that where I work, to be such a small town, has several MAJOR temptations in that regard. In fact, I shouldn't even be talking about them this early in my new program. ;-) 6852. arkymalarky - 4/5/2007 4:47:38 PM A note on target: I don't really want to say when--though the end of summer is what I'm secretly hoping--but I'd like to get under 130. I didn't weigh over 100 lbs until after college, and since childhood I'd always been made fun of for being too skinny (this was pre-heroin-chic). After Mose I stayed around 115 until I hit 30, when I began bingeing at lunch every day with a friend from work. My best weight with exercise and a "toned up" look after that was 123 lbs. I'd like to get around that at least. I'm 5'4". 6853. arkymalarky - 4/5/2007 4:55:46 PM The truckstop and another gas station with GREAT burgers right up the road have also been a temptation. For me, keeping my stress levels (not necessarily anxiety--for me that's a different thing, and can actually make me lose weight if it gets out of control, and I DON'T want to lose it that way) under control are really key. I forget restaurants when my stress is down. When it's up, I want to just grab food. So I'm also trying to incorporate some meditation and more constructive "down time" and work on pacing myself better. That also means getting back into some things I've wanted to do or used to do, like re-learning the guitar, getting my house in order, etc.
There will be frantic days of finishing projects and getting grades in--I've come to DESPISE deadlines--but I want them to be few and far between, compared to what they have been the past three or four years, and I want to handle them better. 6854. arkymalarky - 4/5/2007 5:25:13 PM Couple more things, then I'm logging off for a while:
First, suggestions from anyone? I tried to lay out pretty much everything I'm planning to do. I will also weigh every morning. That's just me, and I work best when I do that, especially to start. I have class on Monday nights, so may or may not post that day. It is the day I may eat out, as well. When I was on Weight Watchers I ate out one day a week--right after the WW meeting.
Second, the date I'm scheduled for WildBlue internet hookup is April 12, so from then on I don't have to sit here in chunks on dialup wondering if Sweepstakes people are trying to call while I'm online. ;-)
Third, is anyone else who's ongoing or starting some kind of "program" interested in any weekly comparisons, group efforts, etc? (thinking back to what I said about my school in the past) Any "jump-start" ideas or warnings against them? In my night class, they're passing some kind of three-day enzyme diet around, and my prof lost--I think he said something like 30-40 lbs--on it combined with "regular" dieting between that one. He's older than Bob, I think over 60. If I get a copy, which they're supposed to email, I'll post it. I'm not thinking of trying it. I did a cabbage soup one years ago that came from my principal at work, and I still cringe thinking about that soup. Bob and I both did it. The first day it was sort of tasty.... 6855. arkymalarky - 4/5/2007 5:26:29 PM Wombat, if you're starting up something after Passover and don't mind posting it, I'd love to read what you're doing. 6856. arkymalarky - 4/5/2007 5:31:55 PM Other possibly relevant details (results-wise) on my particular situation: I've had a full hysterectomy (two years ago) and I'm not on Estrogen or calcium. Like I said, the only supplement I'm planning to take is a multivitamin, but I'm open to suggestions. I'm on Zyrtec sinus meds and a nasal steroid, plus allergy shots. I take something for stress as needed (not often now), and I can't think of anything else that might affect diet/exercise/general health or results of a diet/exercise program. 6857. thoughtful - 4/5/2007 5:33:00 PM Oh boy, I have lots of comments on your plan but I will limit myself to 2 comments, a commendation, and 2 helpful hints at this point.
Comment 1) plan is very high in sugar...especially the breakfast. Milk is full of lactose which is sugar. Fruit juice is full of fructose which is sugar. Cereal is loaded with carbs which is sugar. (See post #6780 above for sugar content of 'healthy' american bkfst.) If you opt for cereal, try to find one with less sugar and more fiber like the kashi go lean cereals. If you would be happy swapping out the v8 juice for the oj, you'll be saving sugar and calories. Slimfast alone is 4 1/2 tsp of sugar.
Comment 2) plan is very low in vegetables. Nonstarchy vegetables (green beans, zucchini, spinach, broccoli, etc) are very filling, provide bulk and fiber which is great for avoiding constipation which can happen when you eat less, are very low calorie and provide a huge nutrition boost not only for vitamins and anti-oxidants, but also for trace minerals. They don't know why, but many of the health benefits they've tried to isolate in vegetables don't work in pill form, but do work when eaten as whole food.
Commendation: drinking water. It's so essential for the body systems to work and it's especially important to flush out any chemicals that are released as your body switches to burning fat. Further it helps you feel full (like a glass of water before a meal is a great way to keep from eating too much) and it has zero calories.
Hint 1: When eating out, whatever portion they serve you, divide it in half (or even a third)...eat half and wrap half to go. Keeps you from overeating, lets you enjoy the meal a second time and saves you from cooking for a day.
Hint 2: Keep the changes you're instituting manageable. It takes at least 3 weeks to form a new habit and doing too much at once can lead to feeling deprived or that the program is too stringent to follow. Instead, focus on losing weight for a lifetime, not just for a diet and make changes that you can live with for your lifetime. The benefits of that...never needing to diet again...doesn't that sound good? 6858. arkymalarky - 4/5/2007 5:52:33 PM Thanks Thoughtful! (I'm still here, going through the other threads). I already do the Hint 1 on eating out, but even half is too much to do on a regular basis, and I'd been eating out entirely too much. If I limit to once a week and still half it, so it's actually twice a week ;-), I should be able to control my intake a lot better than I have been.
Most of these changes aren't really much change for me, which is why I've got things lined out this way. The main thing I'm trying to do for now is calorie limit+exercise (of which I've done ZIP in the last several months). I want to be able to adjust what I eat with the calorie limit as a base. If I focus on more than that I get frustrated and my stomach goes wack at inopportune times. Teaching school and being prone to IBS I am very limited in how much I can change my diet right now.
The second important thing for me is routine. Not having one is killer for me, because I don't like to cook, Bob has his own diet/exercise down pat and his numbers all excellent, and I keep things as low-maintenance as possible (not just with food, but with everything). I've done this same in the past with quite a lot of success, just because I'm limiting my intake and my eating out so much. I know it is too much sugar and not enough vegetables, and I hope to work to shift that, especially by summer. To try that now would cause me problems. I probably wouldn't give up my oj, but the cereal will probably be oatmeal.
You are right on the lifetime. That's what Bob has done, and it's over three years now for him. The dietician told him he would have to institute a lifestyle change. That was in the afternoon and he told her he was going to eat out that evening and start in the morning. She said, "I wouldn't do that," and he didn't. He started that night and has been going ever since.
And please keep all this info coming! Your knowledge and experience in this area is very helpful! 6859. arkymalarky - 4/5/2007 5:55:00 PM One more thing on the milk. Having had a hysterectomy and not really wanting to do a calcium supplement I've increased my milk quite a lot. I don't care for yogurt, but I love cheese. In a day, though, I have two cups of milk. One with cereal and one at night. If I go to oatmeal I will either half the milk or just make it with water. 6860. Wombat - 4/5/2007 5:57:56 PM One of the foods that I have learned to do without is fruit juice. Almost completely empty calories. Considering how much I used to drink, I probably saved 100-200 calories per day not drinking it. I'll have a clementine or two instead.
Arky: if you don't mind being excessively decadent, get out the Reddi-Whip and spritz it in your coffee. You could put 4 tablespoons of whipped cream in your coffee and end up with less calories than your dose of artificial creamer.
6861. arkymalarky - 4/5/2007 6:00:26 PM OOOOhhh, I like that idea, Wombat. I'll put it on my grocery list.
I know about the fruit juice, but I LOVE my oj. Y'all are very convincing, though. I'll think about it. I can replace it with an orange. We have fresh fruit for breakfast at school now.
(Dammit!) 6862. arkymalarky - 4/5/2007 6:00:56 PM And that would be two fruits in a day and no juice. 6863. Wombat - 4/5/2007 6:08:58 PM Cheese is tough. I am capable of eating 8 ozs. of cheese while in my recliner with a good book. Of course, I like the hard, pungent types as well (which are higher in calories, as well). On the other hand, I use a vegetable peeler to shave thin slices on toast (whole wheat or pumpernickel) or ry-krisps. That makes an ounce go a long way. 6864. arkymalarky - 4/5/2007 6:11:50 PM Cheese and nuts are Bob's weaknesses, but they're also pretty much his only significant source of fat and calories in general. He's pretty much quit cheese. I will work any I eat into my supper calories (which is where my veggies will be, as well). I purposely left that part blank, with only a calorie limit. 6865. betty - 4/5/2007 6:12:46 PM oh cheese, you undue every mile I run.
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