If you can't beat 'em, join 'em!
Bite This: Based on the previous "Bite This" the number one New Year's Resolution for 2014 was "to lose weight."
So, as I wriggled my 2014 body into my 2012-2013 jeans last night, I realized something. I must have packed on some pounds in 2013! I tried not to panic as this has happened before. Back in 2005-2006 I lived with one of my best friends, and our single- life nights were filled with booze and food. We had themes for almost every night of the week - Tuesday was Taco Tuesday complete with margaritas, Wednesday was Hump Day Highballs, and so on. I rapidly gained 10+ pounds living with her - (totally worth it at that time). :) She moved away a year later for nursing school and the pounds quickly melted away. I lost that 10 pounds and kept it off for almost 7 years - apparently until this year.
Even though I still eat pretty healthily and exercise regularly, I cannot say that I am really all that surprised. The year started with some pretty heavy life events which led to a lot of emotional eating and drinking. The middle of the year included weekend trips to the lake -every single weekend- which meant all day drinking every Saturday and Sunday. And of course, I had to bake a tasty treat for each and every one of those trips, which meant Friday nights filled with eating raw cookie dough and/or rice krispie treats. The end of 2013 brought two major vacations which meant no exercise, and lots more eating and drinking.
Despite what you may be thinking, and the comments I have already heard - "you cannot even notice!", "you have not put on any weight!"- even a 3 pound weight difference shows on my 5'4" frame (or, rather, in my face). I have pictures to prove it.
And even more discouraging is that it shows in the fact that I cannot button my pants or fit into any shirts. It's aggravating mostly because I hate to shop, and right now my budget will not allow me to shop anyway. So really, it's just practical to lose weight. I am just going to be cliche here and add "losing weight" to my New Year's resolutions.
My job is to help women lose weight. Literally - this is what I do every day. So, you'd think that I would be able to do it myself. I just need to follow the same advice that I give to them. Here are the top 5 strategies for weight loss:
1. Record everything. I sound like a broken record when I tell my group of ladies this one. I cannot stress it enough. If you're recording every food and drink that you are putting into your body, you should get a fairly good estimate of where your calories are coming from. From that, you can see where you can scale back and viola! Calories cut! I have been keeping track every day this week and even though I didn't need an app to tell me where the calories were coming from, it was surprising to see just how many calories were from candy and alcohol. (And I only drink alcohol two nights/week!)
2. Weigh yourself frequently. This helps you to stay accountable and keeps you in check. Weight fluctuations are normal and once you get a handle on how your weight fluctuates, you should be able to easily decipher when you've lost a few or when you've gained a few. Going without weighing yourself is just another form of denial - just do it.
3. Measure your portion sizes! I try to do this at home as much as I can - when I am out, I get weird looks if I pull out my measuring cups. How are you supposed to figure out how many calories you're consuming when you don't even know how large your portion is? Americans severely underestimate and sometimes overestimate portion sizes. Once you get an idea of how small a cup is or how large a tablespoon is, it gets a lot easier to eyeball portion sizes.
4. When snacking between meals, stick to just fruits and/or vegetables. If you stick to this rule, it really limits the amount of processed foods and crap you put into your body. Plus it increases your fruit and vegetable and fiber consumption and helps keep you full.
5. Be as active as you can whenever you can. Think of exercise as a bonus. When it comes to losing weight, it's about 80% diet and 20% activity. Exercise is vital for health in many aspects, but it takes A LOT to burn enough calories to really help you lose weight. However, research shows that people who diet and exercise lose more weight and keep it off better than those who lose weight through diet alone. And those who lose weight through diet alone, do better than those who lose weight through exercise alone. Planned physical activity is fantastic - that is, getting your heart rate up for at least 10 consecutive minutes - but being as active as you can all day long is even better. Having an active lifestyle will also help you keep the weight off.
There you have it. And there I have it. I just have to stick with this to help me get back to my "fighting weight." Or at least to fit into my pants.
Sound bite: Try a day or two this week using a weight loss app such as My Fitness Pal or Lose It! to see where your calories are coming from.
PS HAPPY 2nd BIRTHDAY to my blog!!
So, as I wriggled my 2014 body into my 2012-2013 jeans last night, I realized something. I must have packed on some pounds in 2013! I tried not to panic as this has happened before. Back in 2005-2006 I lived with one of my best friends, and our single- life nights were filled with booze and food. We had themes for almost every night of the week - Tuesday was Taco Tuesday complete with margaritas, Wednesday was Hump Day Highballs, and so on. I rapidly gained 10+ pounds living with her - (totally worth it at that time). :) She moved away a year later for nursing school and the pounds quickly melted away. I lost that 10 pounds and kept it off for almost 7 years - apparently until this year.
Even though I still eat pretty healthily and exercise regularly, I cannot say that I am really all that surprised. The year started with some pretty heavy life events which led to a lot of emotional eating and drinking. The middle of the year included weekend trips to the lake -every single weekend- which meant all day drinking every Saturday and Sunday. And of course, I had to bake a tasty treat for each and every one of those trips, which meant Friday nights filled with eating raw cookie dough and/or rice krispie treats. The end of 2013 brought two major vacations which meant no exercise, and lots more eating and drinking.
Despite what you may be thinking, and the comments I have already heard - "you cannot even notice!", "you have not put on any weight!"- even a 3 pound weight difference shows on my 5'4" frame (or, rather, in my face). I have pictures to prove it.
 |
| After |
 |
| Before |
And even more discouraging is that it shows in the fact that I cannot button my pants or fit into any shirts. It's aggravating mostly because I hate to shop, and right now my budget will not allow me to shop anyway. So really, it's just practical to lose weight. I am just going to be cliche here and add "losing weight" to my New Year's resolutions.
My job is to help women lose weight. Literally - this is what I do every day. So, you'd think that I would be able to do it myself. I just need to follow the same advice that I give to them. Here are the top 5 strategies for weight loss:
1. Record everything. I sound like a broken record when I tell my group of ladies this one. I cannot stress it enough. If you're recording every food and drink that you are putting into your body, you should get a fairly good estimate of where your calories are coming from. From that, you can see where you can scale back and viola! Calories cut! I have been keeping track every day this week and even though I didn't need an app to tell me where the calories were coming from, it was surprising to see just how many calories were from candy and alcohol. (And I only drink alcohol two nights/week!)
2. Weigh yourself frequently. This helps you to stay accountable and keeps you in check. Weight fluctuations are normal and once you get a handle on how your weight fluctuates, you should be able to easily decipher when you've lost a few or when you've gained a few. Going without weighing yourself is just another form of denial - just do it.
3. Measure your portion sizes! I try to do this at home as much as I can - when I am out, I get weird looks if I pull out my measuring cups. How are you supposed to figure out how many calories you're consuming when you don't even know how large your portion is? Americans severely underestimate and sometimes overestimate portion sizes. Once you get an idea of how small a cup is or how large a tablespoon is, it gets a lot easier to eyeball portion sizes.
4. When snacking between meals, stick to just fruits and/or vegetables. If you stick to this rule, it really limits the amount of processed foods and crap you put into your body. Plus it increases your fruit and vegetable and fiber consumption and helps keep you full.
5. Be as active as you can whenever you can. Think of exercise as a bonus. When it comes to losing weight, it's about 80% diet and 20% activity. Exercise is vital for health in many aspects, but it takes A LOT to burn enough calories to really help you lose weight. However, research shows that people who diet and exercise lose more weight and keep it off better than those who lose weight through diet alone. And those who lose weight through diet alone, do better than those who lose weight through exercise alone. Planned physical activity is fantastic - that is, getting your heart rate up for at least 10 consecutive minutes - but being as active as you can all day long is even better. Having an active lifestyle will also help you keep the weight off.
There you have it. And there I have it. I just have to stick with this to help me get back to my "fighting weight." Or at least to fit into my pants.
Sound bite: Try a day or two this week using a weight loss app such as My Fitness Pal or Lose It! to see where your calories are coming from.
PS HAPPY 2nd BIRTHDAY to my blog!!
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