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Well - this girl is nearing her second week in the 2017 mission to release 60lbs. I was just talking with my mother earlier today about the importance of logging a food diary. It really does hold one accountable. Take for instance, today. As in the past, I've come to allow myself 1 splurge day a week. Well, actually in the past it was 2 splurge days. However, I'm 43 now and don't metabolize food in the same way, so I try to keep it to one day. In the past, I never counted calories on a splurge day. The whole point was to eat whatever I wanted, whenever I wanted and it worked. I ended up losing around 60lbs and kept the weight off for close to 3 years with some mild ups and downs before gaining it all back. But, at 43 (and, peri-menopausal to menopausal women know what I'm talking about) even a splurge day needs some accountability. If my calories go over 2,500 then something needs to be cut, even if I've done good all week, exercised the pre-requisite 5 out of 7 days, and burned over 2800 calories. The food diary holds me accountable. It makes me look at the number and come to terms with the truth of what eating that much means in the present moment, not when I was 33.
I feel like the challenging part of this "weight release" journey at 43 is coming to terms with age and all the realities that carries with it. I don't metabolize things the way I used too. Even when I lose weight, this form will not look like that of a 33 year old. Exercise has become just as much physical therapy after dealing with poly arthritis after a bought of rheumatic fever at 40. This isn't about looking good in a swimsuit but making sure I get the right one so it lasts the summer while I work out in the pool. in short, this isn't so much about image although my inner youthful ego wants to make it that way, but genuinely about health and quality of life. Never easy things to grapple with when coming to terms with mid-life realities.
There are a lot of things I still don't know in this life, but I do know we DO NOT know all there is when it comes to the "theory" or "formula" of weight loss. It's so easy for all these so called experts to say, "well, you just need to burn more than you consume", but I'm guessing every single person here has been down that road (including me) enough to realize it's not that simple, even when we fall off the wagon and binge. What makes me resentful at times is I feel the "weigh loss industry" capitalizes on peoples emotions when it doesn't quite work out that simply and we either gain or don't lose by making it seem as if it's our fault or that there's something genuinely wrong with us when the truth is "they" (being scientists and researchers) can't admit there is so much about this process they don't fully understand and factors they're not sure how to integrate into their formula in a way that works for everyone.
That being said, I want to try and make this journey about working with the person I am in the present moment and being mindful of the factors that contribute to my own weight loss experience, which will hold its own distinctions from others. One of the primary things I contemplate is: What is motivating me "now" at 43 to lose weight? Not when I was a teen, or in college, or in my 30's, but what is genuinely relevant to losing weight, right now? Contemplating this is surely not the answer, but it's a good start! Have a wonderful weekend everyone, and peace be with you.
Diet Calendar Entries for 04 March 2017:
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2540 kcal
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Fat: 69.26g | Prot: 95.08g | Carb: 260.72g.
Breakfast: Coffee with Cream and Sugar, Tillamook Extra Sharp Cheddar Cheese, Cooked Mushrooms (Fat Added in Cooking), O'Brien Potatoes, Scrambled Egg (Whole, Cooked), Mezzetta Super Colossal Spanish Queen Pimiento Stuffed Green Olives, Heinz Tomato Ketchup. Lunch: Red Table Wine. Dinner: Bubbies Mochi Ice Cream, Snap Kitchen Crunchy Coconut Shrimp (Medium), Noodles & Company Japanese Pan Noodles with Chicken (Regular), Red Table Wine. more...
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2626 kcal
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Activities & Exercise:
Weight Training (moderate) - 15 minutes, Bicycle - 30 minutes, Resting - 15 hours and 15 minutes, Sleeping - 8 hours. more...
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