Have gotten down to 304 this week. Not feeling the joy about it yet. Definitely feeling the impatience to get out of the 300s. I'm pushing myself to leave the 300 lb. club by the end of this month. I wonder what I'll do when I get there...definitely write a post about it.
It's about the calories. That's what I'm accepting now. It's not about all the tweaking and the nutrient manipulation. Losing weight is not about how many carbs I'm eating, or if I'm eating healthy fats or lean protein or enough fiber. It's not about the vitamins and food supplements I'm taking. It's not even about all the exercise I'm doing. Losing weight is about eating less calories. And that's hard for me to do!!!!!
I get hungry. I really wish I didn't. When I get hungry, I'm in danger of over-eating. Because I like to feel full when I'm done eating. I've resorted to the intermittent fasting because I can manage when I eat more easily. I only eat between noon and 8 pm. I only eat two meals in that window. My first meal is a breakfast-like meal that includes eggs and veggies, and I try to keep it under 500 calories. I try to keep it all very Paleo-like too, mostly veggies, some fruit and lean proteins. No grains, legumes or dairy. But I do love cheese with my eggs...Monterey Jack with mushrooms, Gruyere with spinach, Feta with asparagus, Montrachet and caramelized red onions...do I need to keep torturing you? Or myself? I limit the cheese to two days a week, because if I don't have any, I crave it badly, and if I eat it more often, I'll lose control over it.
The second meal is a bigger meal, obviously. Sometimes it's a not-so-big meal but then I get snacky afterwards and grab handfuls of dry roasted low salt pumpkin seeds. The calories have been adding up with the after dinner snacking, even if they're all Paleo and holy. I really need to get on top of that snacking thing. Sometimes my protein portions are too big. I can't eat one tiny lamb chop. Gotta have three! I can easily eat 8 oz. of meat. And then I load up on the veggies. Lots and lots of fibrous veggies, all sorts of greens. Last night I had two cups of boiled dandelion greens and two cups of braised kale with my skinless chicken thighs. And then I had 3/4 cup of the pumpkin seeds...360 calories. So easy to go over the restricted calorie limit. But I really try hard not to go over my current BMR. Maintenance is okay sometimes. Gaining is NOT okay.
I just started doing this third thing, fasting once a week. I did a 24-hour fast yesterday. Actually, 22 hours. I was ravenous after weight training and Pilates last night, so I broke the fast with a lonely grilled chicken thigh from the refrigerator. Then I proceeded to eat a total of 1305 calories. And I still lost a pound overnight. I thought I'd go for it again today, not eating until dinner. I made it to 2:30, and then caved to 1/4 cup of the lovely oven-roasted mushrooms and shallots I was caramelizing for the coq au vin I'm making for dinner tonight. I also had to drink 2 oz. of the Van Ruiten 2007 Old Vine Zinfandel that I poured into the crockpot over the chicken. Such a good wine!
You know, a little wine definitely takes the edge off a fast. Not something I'm going to do everyday. Mostly because now I'm writing funky HTML code for my new web design project. Drinking on an empty stomach is not conducive to productive work!
Somebody mentioned to me something about posting pictures. Not making a decision about that yet. It doesn't feel like something I want to do right now. Maybe because this new stretch of weight loss hasn’t been going on very long. I just want to make sure I stay on track for a while longer.
2 comments:
Sounds like I eat a lot like you, except I keep my calories to about 1200. I say about cause some days are 1100 and some days are 1300 or 1400. Rarely less than 1100, but has happened that an occasional no =-hunger day ends up at 900 or so.
I love cheese. I will never give it up unless they find out it's the cure for cancer-n-everything kind of thing. I have it at least once a day and sometimes twice. Me addicted. I admit it. I find I'm more satisfied with full fat or low fat, but hate no-fat. Too chemically and bitter tasting. So, Jarlsberg lite is fine, but I want my cheddar 2% and better full fat. Blue cheese full fat. :)
I find that for me it's a combo of LOTS OF FLUIDS BEFORE MEALS and between as needed to be properly uberhydrated. I drink ideally 3 glasses of water while I'm preparing my meal so I sit down with my stomach already giving me the "stretch" signals. I get full fast this way when I begin to eat. My meals include total (including prewatering) 5 to 7 glasses of fluid. I find this keeps things moving intestinally, keeps me from lower-carb dehydration, and keeps me full.
I rarely get hungry with Primal/Primarian eating combined with lots of mealtime fluids.
Are you drinking a lot of fluids (I don't know what the big formula is, but for me, at my size, when I don't exercise, 15 cups a day. When I exercise, more. Lots more. I get dry mouth on these hot days cause I sweat a lot in the Miami sun when I walk.)
Hydrate pre meals. See how that goes for you. Don't give up cheese if you love it. Just measure it and enjoy it fully.
Keep a calorie count/track and see at which level you lose in a way you like. Might be 1400 or 1200, but that's one way to see where you lose steadily and happily.
Best to you as you fight the fatfight...
I usually drink 10-13 cups of water a day, plus coffee/tea. I'll drink most of it right after I wake up, and the remaining just before going to bed. I can't seem to combine food and beverage (unless it's got alcohol!). Makes me gaggy.
I do track calories, but my appetite varies so much day to day that I've not payed attention to what calorie level gives me a solid loss. I just know that I can't seem to lose anything unless it's under 1750, and I can maintain between 1750 and 2100. As long as I'm exercising. I would love it if I could keep calories under 1500 on a consistent basis, which is what the intermittent fasting and eating window helps me do.
It's Saturday, so I'm trying to stay out of the kitchen completely this morning. Otherwise, I might fall into last night's leftover coq au vin!
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