Driver License Weight
I just got my new Driver License in the mail. I'm not one to ever lie about my weight so I was surprised to see that my weight on my license was 127. At some point in my life I must have weighed that much. I was thinking I should try to weigh what my driver's license actually says, so I've revamped by goal weight from 135 and now dropped it down to 127. I do feel so terrific right now being 14 pounds down that in some ways I could just stop (after all my jeans, shorts and pants all fit again!) But this diet system is working so well I want to see how far I can go and how much fun it will be to get all the way down. So from the original 161 pounds that I was on April 9, I'm down to 147. I did have 12 more to go to get to 135 but now I'm going for "my drivers license weight" I'm going to try for 127. So that means 20 more pounds to go. And at this point I'm eating more and losing only a pound a week so I think I'll be on this all summer, which is great because summer is by far the easiest time to diet because all the best foods of summer are super low in calories and super healthy: watermelon, corn, cherries, peaches, apricots, tomatoes, cucumbers, nectarines, grapes, blueberries, raspberries, blackberries.....and everything cooked on the grill is so yummy so you almost just lose weight without trying in the summer! Plus, there are so many fun things to do outside from walking to biking to playing tennis to swimming, etc.
I happen to like the word diet. It just describes what you are eating and doing. So I don't really have the negative connotations that some people have with it or feel depressed by it. I know WW calls it an "eating plan" but no matter what you call it, the goal is to lose weight and be healthier. (I realize this may be a little off-color for some, but my daughter was uncomfortable saying male and female anatomical parts so she decided she was just going to say "peanuts" and "china" And guess what, with the "new names" they are still the same thing and your mind automatically goes to what it means. So "diet" or "eating plan" or "spa food" or "healthy eating" or "nutrition plan" or "fiddle recipes" they all mean the same thing.)
I'm still going strong using the Weight Watcher on-line program. I wanted to share more thoughts on Metabolism and some other diet tips that are working for me. Basically this week I was working on eating the maximum amount I could eat and still lose weight. So on Friday, even with eating a piece of See's Candy my daughter gave me, going to Cheesecake Factory for lunch and then out for two other meals I still managed to lose another pound. (I'm weighing myself everyday even though WW recommends once a week because I'm interested in the entire process and I like seeing where and when I'm losing or gaining.)
Then this Memorial Day weekend we went to the Tim McGraw concert in San Francisco (FANTASTIC CONCERT!!) followed by a great Memorial Day weekend party at our friends, Stasia and Charlie's. (I'm actually going to write a separate email about Stasia and Charlies because the food was SO GREAT and I have to share all the recipes with you!!) Even though I was away from my computer I still kept a food journal in my purse and wrote down everything I ate. And even though I was still restraining myself from my normal "no-holds-barred-love-to-try-everything-possible" way of eating, I still managed to eat double what I was supposed to on both Saturday and Sunday, plus vodka drinks at concert and FABULOUS tequila drink at Charlie and Stasia's. (tequila, grapefruit juice, cranberry juice and orange juice). If I hadn't been siting in the car for 6 hours on the drive up and 6 hours on the drive down and had managed to squeeze in some exercise, I probably still could have lost weight even with the breakfast buffet at the hotel and all the delicious food at the party yesterday. But with no exercise to accompany the extra food and all that sitting, I'm back to even. No loss, no gain but I sure had a great weekend! So the bottom line is that you can have a one day splurge and still lose weight, but a two day splurge plus sitting isn't going to get you to your goal.
For those of you not interested in WW, I did find out there is another on-line program that is free and it is called Calorie Count.
If you don't want to register for it, you can still just use it to search for calorie, fiber, protein, info etc on your favorite foods.
With Weight Watchers every 50 calories is 1 point. (Some things change depending on how much fiber is in something so you can eat more and there are some things that are zero points because they are only 20 calories, etc. but basically that is the way it works. So someone who eats at 22 point a day diet with 35 optional points for the week is basically getting 1100 calories a day with 1750 optional calories a week. WW was smart in the fact that they made the points system because it is easier to add up small numbers.) Also, it has all the support from groups, leaders, recipes and time-tested info that works. Clearly I love the system (I'm just against the artificial sweeteners and non-fat fake cheese). I think the on-line system may not work for people who don't love the computer. I'm kind of a computer addict so it has been super convenient for me to enter everything and I like looking at the charts of my weight going down and I like the smiley faces you get when you drink your water or eat your fruit and veggies.
Both Calorie Count and WW are basically about portion control. Nothing is forbidden and you just have to think about it like spending money. What is "worth it" to you or how can your incorporate the foods you love in and off-set them with lower calorie portions.
So here are 10 tips that have really been working for me:
1. I write EVERYTHING DOWN! EVERYTHING! I've been tempted to cheat when I just put one piece of licorice in my mouth or one cracker. But who am I cheating? Even if it is zero points, I still log it! And if I have gained weight (like this week where I was down a pound and then back up by Monday, it is easy to see what I ate this weekend (attached below) So whether it is a journal you keep in your purse, and app for your iphone or or on-line all are a way of keeping track.
2. Writing the food down, or looking up the points/calories of something distracts you from eating. It gives you something "to do" that is still thinking of food but isn't eating. Also, according to the nutrition specialist at the famous Golden Door Spa she gets the most credit from clients who lose weight who keep the "dreaded" food diary. And that keeping a food diary/journal "can play a significant role in helping you achieve weight-loss goals and manage medical conditions such as blood pressure, cholesterol, blood sugar, and food allergies. Keeping a consistent food diary is an important predictor of successful long-term weight management."
3. I keep the pre-measured bowls of cherries, blueberries, blackberries, tomatoes out on my counter so that when I want a little nibble of something I can walk by and eat a couple. The bowl is already written down and counted. I just don't eat it all at once. http://mailihealthyrecipes.blogspot.com/search/label/Bowls%20for%20portions
4. If water is boring to you, pretend you are at a spa: put mint leaves and fresh limes in your water. Put the water in a pretty glass. Put basil and cucumber in the water.
5. Have a cup of hot mint tea at night. This has been saving me!! I'll really want something else to eat and the hot tea is filling and the mint tea is decaffinated and doesn't need sugar or milk.
6. Be sure to have a daily vitamins. Since I've been taking the magnesium, calcium, zinc supplement in addition to my multi-vitamin I haven't been having any headaches.
7. Weigh or measure everything. This has been huge for me. Even though I'm a chef and know more than the average person about what an ounce of liquid looks like or a 3 ounce piece of fish, etc. on this diet I have my trusty digital food scale out and I have four sets of measuring spoons and cups. Anyone who knows me, knows I don't even like to measure when I cook, so measuring everything was a major challenge/hassle to me, but it has such a huge benefit. In most cases I got MORE than I would have guessed. And i'm perfectly satisfied with a 1/2 cup of rice. And 3 ounces of flank steak was more than I thought it would be and weighing the slice of cheddar cheese to find out it is only 3/4 of an ounce and not even an ounce was a big deal. And while I can estimate when I'm at a restaurant at home I'm still getting out the measuring spoon to put a teaspoon of sugar in my tea!
8. Eat something every two to three hours. One of the biggest mistakes people make while being on a diet is to hold back and not eat for as long as possible. Then the hunger gets so overwhelming that they end up bingeing. So try to eat some kind of healthy snack or put something in your body every two hours and no longer than three hours. Eating more frequently actually helps boost your metabolism. I personally eat "two lunches" almost everyday. I'll eat one lunch around 11:00 and another lunch around 2:00. I also have something significant at 4:00 so I'm not starving at dinner.
9. I eat yogurt everyday. I don't know if this helps or not but it sure seems too. I know yogurt is really beneficial for numerous reasons and I have always loved it. I eat the Activa Yogurt (NOT the light versions) every single day.
10. Go on a walk. I'm going to write an entire email about this but for right now this is the short version. Walking is terrific for your body and mind. It is especially nice to be outdoors during during the Spring and summer. Even if you can only take one long walk on the weekend it is worth taking the time to do it. Notice all the flowers and the beauty of nature around you.
Then here are some foods I've been eating recently:
1 Apricot ZERO POINTS or 17 calories! (2 apricots .5 points and 3 is 1 point)
Popcorn 3 cups air popped only 1 point. 3 cups cooked in oil is only 3 points. So since I like the oil and salt I just have 1 cup of oil popped for 1 point! Popcorn is very filling!
Sun-Dried Tomato Chicken Sausage from Trader Joe's. only 2 points or 110 calories
1 cup bowl of cherries 1 point
Corn on the cob 1 point or 77 calories. If the corn is sweet and fresh you don't need butter. (I still like a little salt though:-)
Tomatoes Zero Points (you already saw my post on that
Radishes Zero points and only 1 calorie in a large radish!! Something about who spicy they are is satisfying to me. I love to munch on them. This is something I grab and munch on throughout the day!
1 cup watermelon 1 point or 46 calories.
Scallops, Shrimp and Crab. So low in calories and points and so rich tasting!
And thanks to Carla and Marsha for telling me about the brown rice pasta. It is much better tasting than the whole wheat stuff! I still like regular pasta with semolina but at least the brown rice kind doesn't taste like cardboard like the whole wheat pasta.
Finally, my sister called me last week after she'd gone on a hike with some friends. They came back for the hike and had this wonderful meal of salad with a spicy Posole. My sister went on and on and on about the fabulous salad dressing. So I thought I'd share it with you. It is from the May issue of Sunset magazine.
I hope I'm not boring you with all of this diet stuff. I guess those that are bored can just hit delete:-)
Happy Summer!
Maili
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