chunkychops's Journal, 13 October 2009

Great attitude. That's a big part of it. I fight to make myself write everything down in my food journal (on days I'm good AND on days that I'm bad). It helps me realize that even when I'm bad, about what my weight "cost" will be. We know that it takes 3500 calories to equal a pound of fat. So even if I'm having one of those "off" days where I do choose to eat dessert or an extra piece of pizza, I know how much of a "pound of fat" it'll cost me. Somehow, writing it down (that extra 400 calories for a piece of pizza or 800 for a piece of cheesecake) keeps it more in perspective for me. I know that if I've eaten an extra 750 calories, that's a quarter of a pound of fat. I think of it in terms of cubes of butter. The are four cubes or sticks of butter in a pound. So every 750 calories I overeat, I know that's a handful of fat around my middle (a stick of butter!). Or, conversely, if I can make myself exercise 750 calories off on the treadmill or eliptical machine, I know that I really just eliminated a stick of butter's worth of fat on my midsection (or arm or wherever you like it the least!). I don't know if that'll help but that's my two-cent's worth of advice. That and always write down your food intake. It's all about calories in versus calories out. Simple math. Tough to do, but simple in terms of the numbers. I doubt you ate an extra 3500 calories OVER your daily allotment. So that's less than a pound then.Keep your great attitude and persist. You'll do great!!!  

Don't give up, just keep trying:)