In Search of the Good Life: 2011

Ugh, I am so embarrassed, but I am still right where I started. I have had the goal to lose 20 pounds for literally 3 years now, and haven't made any lasting progress. It is frustrating, because I keep thinking (and really believing) that something is going to change and I will lose the weight, but nothing has happened. I would be foolish to believe that without deliberate effort and a solid plan the weight will just come off. So I am in progress of making a solid plan. The problem is, I have made literally hundreds of these said "plans" and I never stick with them, so what will make this one different? I think at first I will need to make a pre-calorie counted meal plan that I can stick with. I will aim for 1200-1500. I love a challenge, I just can't cheat. I also want to make rules about how I eat, because things come up, or I might go out with friends and I don't want to give up my social life for some diet. Heck, a better social life is one of the main reasons I want to lose weight in the first place. So for now, I am just going to "try harder" on the same rules I have aimed for in the past. Will I make them this time? I don't know, but I sure want to. A large part of it is believing that they will pay off. When it comes down to it, I do something because I believe it will have an effect. I run because I truly believe that more runs will allow me to get in better shape. I study because I truly believe that my studying will result in better grades. I go to work because I have full faith that the more hours I work, the larger my paycheck will be. For some reason, I don't truly believe that this one bite of cookie will result in weight gain. And perhaps that one bite doesn't. But lots of little bites add up. I am confident that is my biggest weight loss obstacle right now. I don't eat 3 meals, I eat constantly. And granted most of it is healthy (fruit, nuts, peanut butter) but they add up to extra calories. And because I just nibble on them, I have no real concept of how much I've actually eaten. This need to change. Especially with calorie dense foods such as nuts. I weigh more than I need to because I eat more than I need to. But changing these habits that are ingrained into my daily routine will not be easy. I need to make a habit of working out, running, doing core, a snacking taboo, healthy meals, and being hungry. I think another issue is satisfaction. I have it in my head that if I have a craving, eating will make it go away. But the problem is, once I eat that, I crave something else. This needs to stop. instead, i need to just say no, to flex my self denial muscle, and walk away. Only Jesus satisfies. No amount of food will satisfy me. But I can't keep talking about what I want to do, I need to do it. To live it. To be it. I need to stack successful hour on successful hour. Day after day. Great week upon great week. And month on month, success will be mine. The key to running (and weight loss) is consistency.
Here are my rules to rid mindless eating:
1. no grazing; employ a snacking taboo
2. never eat out of a package, put food on a plate, put the package away
3. always eat sitting down, at a table (this is not possible for me at work, but I will do this when I am at home)
4. avoid junk food and diet soda. you can have a few cheats a week, but treat them like indulgences.
5. pre-weigh all calorie dense foods (nuts, peanut butter) be extra sure to not eat these out of the package, but count them and stick to the serving size
6. eat slow
7. no eating after dinner. once dinner is done, kitchen is closed. brush your teeth.
8. go to bed hungry

In Search of the Good Life

Monday, June 6, 2011

Try, try again?

Monday, March 7, 2011

A million miles in a thousand years