The Motivation is Finally Here =)

I have a new diet plan, that I really hope works this time.


I will be eating mostly fresh whole foods.  This includes:
*Fruits (fresh, frozen or dried)
*Veggies (fresh, frozen, or steamed)
*Nuts
*Brown rice
*Oatmeal
*Hummus
*Beans
*Greek yogurt
*Cheese
*Nut butter
*Milk
*Eggs


I can eat meat every day but only in moderation, and it has to be the smallest portion on my plate.




I will be eating very little:
*Sweets (I can eat dark chocolate though)
*Processed foods
*Fast food
*Canned food
*Sauces/dressings
*Breads/pastries
*Soda/sugary drinks
*Other stuff I know isn't good for me


I am going to do this in moderation, and make sure that at least 5 days a week I do not eat the stuff on my second list.  I think that giving myself a little room to eat bad foods will help me achieve my goal because I won't burn out so quickly.  Now I just need to make it to the grocery store!


I will also walk my dog every day as well as do an exercise video.  I also get a lot of exercise babysitting, especially when I take the kids to the pool.  


My goal is to lose 1 pound a week.  With this goal, I will be be at my goal weight in one year.  This may sound slow, however, I believe this will help me keep off the weight the easiest and most effectively. 


Current Weight: 167.5
Current BMI: 29.7
Goal Weight: 120
Goal BMI: 21.3

Day 1 All Over Again (Take Two...)

So I have decided to get back on track starting Sunday.  I recently got on antidepressants and meat no longer affects me (thank goodness!) so I think I'm ready to do this again.


There are some challenges facing me, however.  I moved home for the summer and my mom doesn't buy or prepare healthy food.  A possible solution to this is maybe going grocery shopping for her or giving her a list prior to shopping.  My whole family is rather unhealthy so I think we could all use a change.


Another challenge is getting exercise.  I am going to try to walk my dog ever day (the poor thing is also out of shape) and do exercise videos but I don't have any gym membership here like I do up at school so motivation is hard to come by.


I will do this.  Nothing, not even a few disadvantages will stand in my way.  I will get healthier.

Taking a Break

I am going to be taking a break from trying to lose weight. I have been depressed pretty much on and off since middle school, but in the last two months it has gotten to the point where I can't deal with it by myself any longer (none of this has been diagnosed but I'm 99% sure I have depression, possibly atypical depression). Hopefully I can make it to the doctor at the beginning of next week.


The reason I have decided to put my diet on hold because of depression is that I do not want to see this turn into an eating disorder. I strongly believe that I need to get my mental health under control before I do anything drastic (especially a diet because I think one must be very emotionally strong before making changes like this).


Once I get this under control everything might be a little easier. At my best I am a morning person, but lately it has been a struggle to get out of bed. I believe once I get this fixed I'll be able to wake up early and go to the gym.


I am still on a mission to lead a healthier life, it has just shifted from physical heath to mental health.

Discouragement.

I came home to find out that, even though I've been dieting for 3 weeks with only 1 splurge day, that my BMI had dropped .02


My diet used to be awful... how could this happen? I feel slightly smaller... is it all in my head?


A factor might be stress. As I was venting to my mother about this last night, she said that her body held a lot of weight in because of stress. I'm going to work on taking vitamins to help this.


I don't expect to drop that much weight right away, but after how bad my diet was, I figured that I would have dropped SOME weight!


Just keep pressing on...






My absolute deadline is Halloween. I'm getting a Sailor Moon Cosplay for Halloween (which is also my anniversary with my boyfriend...)

Milk

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

I found this video very interesting.  I drink organic 1% milk, but I really didn't know much about the differences or benefits of drinking other milks.  I used to love rice milk as a child (I was allergic to milk ...not lactose intolerant, I would get all red and puffy with milk) and I was considering it as an alternative but since it doesn't have protein I might just try soy milk.  I am also happy to know that David is getting the full benefits of milk when he drink Lactate.




This article is a good one for figuring out how to eat well on a budget.




I think I could be doing something wrong with this whole vegetarian crap.  I feel all spaced out and tired and like something is wrong with my head and I'm wondering if it has to do with having proper nutrition.  The good thing is though I haven't felt sick or had a headache since the last time I had meat! Yay!  I think I'll do a recording of my daily food and see if I am doing something wrong according to this nutrition software I have.


Oh and, eating organic food is expensive! Holy cow. $80 on groceries this week does not make me a happy camper.  Neither does donating all my delicious meat to my boyfriend and his roommate.  Oh well.  If I feel better I guess that's all that matters.




I need to get my butt to the gym still. I haven't been since the 12th! Yikes! I was going to try to go everyday but I just watched a video that says the best way to optimize your workout is to do it 30 minutes for 5 days a week and include variety.  I always heard 30 minutes will only sustain your weight though, not help you lose it.  I don't know what to believe anymore!  Either way, I need to get back to the gym.

Free Love Hippie???

Let me just start by saying this week I feel like I should move to Boulder with all the free love hippies, but I promise, none of this has to do with me being a liberal, and all of this has to do with me trying to listen to what my body needs from me.  I'm not joining PETA and wearing ratty clothes with hemp necklaces and showering only once a month, you can be sure of that!




I don't know if this will help or not, but I think I'm going to buy organic foods on top of becoming a vegetarian.  I think my body is too sensitive to everything, so this might help.  Plus, organic milk tastes a million times better.


Oh, and yeah, I am going full veggie.  I decided last night.  I ate some chicken yesterday and got a major headache and I just didn't feel good so we're trying the vegetarian thing for sure now.  It could change later, but if this makes me feel better overall it's staying this way.


I bought 2 organic pizzas today as well as organic milk that was only $2.50/gal(yay!), organic vegetarian spinach bites, organic pasta, and organic tofu.  I also bought a lot of things that weren't organic, but this could be a good start to kind of see if the organic foods don't upset my body.  The one thing that might not be that healthy that I splurged on was Nutella ..but hey, it's pretty much mostly hazelnuts, right?? =)


With this vegetarian crap, all I can say is thank goodness for cheese and nuts! Also, thank goodness I didn't really eat much meat anyways or this would really suck.  Finally, thank goodness I actually like vegetables, and I hate hate hate cooking meat because it's so gross.  Maybe this won't be so bad afterall.




I bought some supplements today from a little independent organic shop.  I bought Silica Plus for my hair, skin, and nails as I tend to get dry skin, broken nails, and dull hair, so I thought it would be a good idea.  I got a B complex supplement for my metabolism, energy, and because I am on the pill so I need more B vitamins because of it.  I also bought Melatonin because I am stressed beyond belief and have been sleeping weird.  I already take Adrenal Support Caps, Folic Acid, and probiotics.  I spent $30 on all those supplements today though so they better work!




I have been doing excellent with eating better, I just need to get my butt to the gym.  It's been kinda hard with me playing Final Fantasy XIII all week though.  Tomorrow David is probably going snowboarding so I'll have a chance to get to the gym and do some hardcore housework (yes, it's a workout!) which will hopefully get me back on track.  It's just so hard to plan food schedules and workout schedules because I try to wait 4 hours after eating fat and 2 hours after eating carbs so it just never seems to work out.  Maybe I'll just start going whenever I feel like and disregard that rule.  We'll see.

A Diet Without A Scale.

**Unfortunately I haven't bought my scale yet so Katie's way ahead of me! But it doesn't mean that I'm letting myself get away with bad habits!**


What I have learned is that fruit is my savior. I am such a sugar addict that I've probably had way more servings of fruit than I should have, but oh well. Canteloupe, Strawberries, and Blueberries. I'm stocking up on my antioxidants. XD


I'll admit that I did overindulge on cupcakes for my boyfriends birthday, but if it makes it any better, I limited my general food portions too.


So I've only been drinking water during Lent, but I think I'm not going to start drinking sodas and coffees more than once or twice a week when it ends. When it does, I'm going to work on limiting consumption and low calorie options (Diet Cherry Sierra Mist ftw.)


I LOVE energy drinks but I'll limit myself to the no calorie, low caffiene Xyience, which honestly are my favorites, but are harder to come by. Coffee will also be difficult, but I'll ensure to eat something (healthy of course!) with it so the caffiene doesn't overwhelm my body.
* Two years ago I think I was getting heart palpitations from drinking a Rockstar Pomegranate everyday at work. I need to work on my caffiene tolerance.


Another thing I've noticed that I need to work on is the times of day I eat. Your body more effieciently digests breakfast (hence why it's most important!) and least efficiently digests dinner. Therefore, exponentially smaller meals, if at all possible. Then again, I had yogurt, fruit, granola, and my one-sweet-a-day for lunch. (I told you I was a sugar addict!)


Another thing I'm going to invest in are nuts. They have protiens and healthy fats which will be very effective for me. I'm realizing that as I watch my diet, I've been eating less meat, but there is no way in hell I'll be vegetarian... I just need to get some more protien in my diet! I had some peanut butter with my breakfast but I don't think that will be good enough.


Sadly, I wish I knew how close I was getting to my goal weight, however, in the past week (even with how crappy its been) I feel better about myself.


Somehow the sacrifice itself has made me feel better.