Finally Getting Fit

I was raised with the belief that cravings are an okay thing. Obey them because if you are craving something, that meant there is something in the food you’re craving that your body needs. However, when I got older and people talked about craving foods that were less than ideal for them, I began to think that cravings were a little more than what I’d been told.

I decided to do a little research because I have not been able to get enough yogurt lately. However, I’ve also been feeling sick to my stomach off and on, which may or may not be caused by being lactose intolerant. So, in theory, if cravings truly are what I was raised to believe, I should be able to replace the yogurt with something else that will give me what my body needs…

According to WebMD, “Surveys estimate that almost 100% of young women and nearly 70% of young men had food cravings during the past year. That covers most of us, doesn’t it?”

Well it’s certainly good to know that I’m not alone! But what does that mean exactly?

According to this article, food cravings pretty much are mostly in your head. Take away the pregnancy cravings side of things, and you’re most likely craving things because you want to calm down, comfort yourself, or are addicted to what you’re craving.

If you’re struggling with food cravings, read the article. It has seven facts about cravings and well as ideas on how to deal with them

As for me, I’m not too worried about yogurt cravings but will be taking a break from it nonetheless so I can see if I’m lactose intolerant.

And you shouldn’t be worried if you’re craving healthy foods. Just take things in moderation.

Even though I no longer live in the United States, that doesn’t mean I have forgotten about one of the biggest traditions held there.

Celebrating the Fourth of July!

As with more holidays, food is a huge part of this celebration. With potato salad, hot dogs, grandma’s pies and all kinds of other goodies, it’s easy to overload and be groaning at the end of the night instead of ‘oooing’ and ‘ahhing’ when the fireworks are going off.

I’m not here to warn you to be careful about eating too much, though. If you’re going to do it, you’re going to do it. You know the consequences and only you will know how you will feel tomorrow morning.

No, I’m here to talk about the interesting benefits of one of the traditional fourth of July celebration foods: Watermelon!

If you haven’t heard the news, it turns out this tasty little fruit has a lot more going for it than a sweet demeanor and seeds that are fun to spit all over the place.

As it turns out, watermelon might be the new aphrodisiac on the ‘makes you hot’ list.

Scientists say that watermelons pack an interesting punch for you blood vessels and very well could increase your libido. Not only that, but there is a large list of other health benefits too.

The unfortunate part of this whole thing is that I don’t like watermelons. Back to oysters and green M&Ms for me.

Have a safe, happy, and fun holiday to those who are celebrating.

One of the big reasons I am trying to lose weight is because I want to have as healthy of a pregnancy as I can. While having a baby isn’t in my close financial future, that just means I have more time to work with when it comes to losing weight.

I haven’t gotten on the scale for a couple weeks now, and I’m a bit nervous about the possible ‘damage’ I may have done by not weighing in. Despite that, the worry I feel about that is nothing compared to the stress and depression I was dealing with before, so I’m still glad that I went off the scale for right now.

Towards the end of next month, I have an appointment to see a doctor. I’m both excited and nervous about this appointment because it could mean changes in a lot of ways. I’m hoping to find out why I have such a hard time losing weight. I’m hoping that she’ll make changes to my diet that will help me get even healthier. I’m also hoping that the appointment will be a turning point.

I want to be a mother so badly, but I am afraid that whatever is going on with my body is going to prevent that dream from coming true. I know a lot of women with PCOS (I’m not 100% sure I have PCOS, by the way) just have to lose a little weight and then they get pregnant, but therein lies the problem.

So I guess you can consider me on a bit of a hiatus (though I’ll still be posting) until I go to that appointment and find out what’s going on.

Wish me lots of luck and patience.

I received an email today that linked to a page (it was just a question, so no link) that asked:

“What does overeating and being overweight giving you?”

I was a bit puzzled about the question at first until I realized it was the basic question of why overeat. And I haven’t stopped thinking about it all morning.

When I first started my weight loss journey, it was easy to figure out why I overate. I was abused as a child and shut down a lot of myself and my personality. I used to eat as much food as I could get my hands on until I would ache with being full. It was my way of feeling something without the fear of having something bad happen because of my feelings. I could eat until I hurt and no one would know it but me.

I’m in a much better place now with much better circumstances. Those reasons no longer apply, so it was a bit harder to think of what I was getting from being fat.

These days, I think food being a comfort thing plays a big part in things. I was betrayed and hurt by people I trusted with my life from an early age, so it’s very hard for me to trust people. Food has never betrayed my trust and has never failed to be there.

So that’s the food side of it, but what about the being overweight?

For right now, you’re guess is pretty much as good as mine. I think part of me thinks that fat equals unattractive equals safe as far as men goes, but I feel like I’m still missing a key element that will answer the question better.

So, what does overeating and being overweight give you?

Or is it round three? I can’t quite remember.

I was roaming the weight loss part of the blogsphere yesterday and read on Irish Mom’s blog that one of her goals for this week is to keep a food diary. “If I bite it, I’ll write it,” as she says. (I love that little saying.) It got me thinking that maybe it’s time I get back into keeping a food diary.

When I first started on the ‘I’m in Australia now’ leg of my weight loss journey, it was a big kick in the head. I couldn’t believe how much food I would shove in my mouth (or rather, would have shoved in my mouth without the food diary) on any random day. Keeping the food diary made me think about what I was eating.

But I sort of grew out of it. I was more aware, more careful and all the better for it. I could easily recall everything I had eaten in a given day and I thought before I ate.

Now, as I skip the scale, it will be all too easy for me to fall back in to bad habits. Having a food diary would help me out at least a little in that area because it would at least keep me aware and away from ‘mindless munching’. Mindless munching is a bad, bad habit for me that I definitely don’t want to get back into.

So I’m thinking about taking it up again.

Do you use a food diary? Do you find it useful?

I have been thinking a lot lately about why I am losing weight and why I want to continue to try to do so. Back when I first started seriously getting into dieting, I had a while to go before my wedding. I already had the dress and it was too big, so I would need it to get fitted anyway. Of course I wanted to lose weight for the wedding.

Here are a few tips and tricks in case you’re looking to do the same thing from someone who did it.

*Start early. It is always better to work in the healthy habits as soon as possible. That also makes it easier if you have a ‘bad’ day to recover afterward.

*Get your whole wedding party in on it. You shouldn’t make it a requirement for everyone in the wedding to lose weight, but it can be great to have that support from anyone who wants to participate.

*Plan ahead. For your pre-wedding parties, plan ahead and request healthier food and snacks.

*Always remember the dress/tux. If you’re going to be losing a significant amount of weight, be sure to have an appointment not long before the wedding to get the dress fitted.

*Most importantly: Don’t let it spoil the day. If you haven’t lost as much as you would have liked, it’s okay! It’s your day and no one is going to be thinking about your weight.

I know this is a little different from my usual posting, but I hope some people find it useful.

There is nothing like a good reminder of why you’re on a quest to improve your health. I got one of those reminders last night.

I have completely taken rice out of my diet because of how it makes me tired. I’ve kicked pasta and now use bean curd noodles. I have had rye bread in the last couple of days, but I have otherwise kicked out bread. The same goes for potatoes.

All in all, I have made a lot of positive changes for my diet in response to the insulin resistance side effects I was having before.

But I dropped my guard last night.

My husband and I went out to eat last night and I ordered an extra bowl of veggies on the side. When it comes to craving things that are good for me, I obey my cravings. My meal already came with some veggies, but I had a desperate craving for broccoli and, well…

The veggies in my meal included two small potatoes. Now, I haven’t had potatoes for a few months now. Time obviously liberally dusted my mind with ‘forget potion’ because I figured I’d give the potatoes a go and see how it went. I wasn’t sure if I’d actually react to them or not.

Well, I did.

Potatoes don’t knock me out with quite the force rice does, but those two little spuds were certainly the next best thing. About five minutes after we finished eating, I was yawning and ready for bed.

Why do I always have to test things? Why can’t I just leave things alone when I’m told no? Bleh. Ah well. I have been well and truly reminded why I don’t eat potatoes. (Or rice, or pasta, or…)

How about you? Are you insulin resistant or battling other factors that make getting fit that much more difficult?

When I started this journey a year ago, I wrote this on my 100 Pounds to Go blog:

I’m Spunk, and I’m 100 pounds (about 45 kilos) from my ideal weight. I got married May 5th, 2007.The honeymoon is over.

If you’d like to join me on my quest for health, please feel free. People like to know they aren’t alone when they take on challenges.

When I wrote that, I was ready and rearing to go, not worried about anything going wrong or stumbling on my path. All I knew was that I wanted to get healthy in a hurry.

While the hurry part hasn’t really happened, a year on I am in no doubt that I am many times healthier. I feel better than ever, have more energy than ever, and I even go to a local gym on a regular basis.

I can definitely tell you I didn’t see that happening a year ago.

All in all, I may not be down in the pounds like I would like, but I’m still very happy with my progress mentally and emotionally so far. I’m in a much better place.

How about you?

When it comes to chocolate…

…I feel like a drug addict.

Does anyone else feel this way? I’m almost ashamed to admit it, but it’s how I feel. Sometimes I truly feel a little uneasy, a bit cranky, a bit whatever if I don’t get some chocolate. I am usually okay, but on some days…

Are you like this? Do you have an addiction to chocolate? A passion for pasta?

I think the predominant addiction is chocolate, and I’m not the only one who things so. According to this study from Northwestern University, “Many food scientists have reported chocolate to be the single most craved food. Some researchers have even argued that chocolate is addictive.”

So what can you do about it? There are a few things:

1. Ease yourself off it. If you eat a chocolate bar a day (which I hope none of you actually do), try cutting it down to half a bar for one week. Then a quarter of a bar for the next week and after that, try cutting daily down to every other day and so on.

2. Go cold turkey. That’s probably the hardest way and the one that will see you with some side effects, but it might be the only way that helps you.

3. Give yourself strict limits. This only works if you have enough will power, but while I was cutting down my sweets but not ready to go completely without it, I limited myself to two squares (about the size of the tip of my pinky) of dark (healthier) chocolate.

Do you have any food addictions? What do you do to save yourself from overindulgence?

I’m posting this a bit late, but I reckon you all will forgive me.

This week turned out to be a lot of crazy in a basket as the anniversary weekend ended and road trips and volunteering began. I feel like I haven’t really had the chance to sit and relax since last week. Even now I’m not really relaxing because I am working on getting all my blogs up to date. (I’ll be doing some back posting, so don’t be surprised to see posts from earlier this week that weren’t actually up earlier this week.)

The good news is that I had a lot of fun last weekend. You can read about how the anniversary went here.

The not so great news is that I’m not looking forward to stepping on the scale this Monday. I felt okay at the end of the weekend because I enjoyed myself but didn’t go overboard, but since then I have really been feeling the stress. Stress is definitely not good for weight loss.

I have been feeling stressed because I work at home and love what I do, but it’s frustrating because I wish I could pay the bills off faster. There is a job I can apply for, but it could mean that I don’t get to post as much and might even have to give up one or two of my blogs.

Not good.

I have been having such a hard time staying away from my comfort foods, but the good news is that I have succeeded in still staying away from bread and pasta.

So, slowly but surely, I am getting back to the nitty gritty of work. How are you doing?

As I mentioned on Monday, I decided to ‘take a break’ from the diet so I could well and truly enjoy my anniversary.

While I didn’t automatically go out and eat all the pasta, bread, and death by chocolate cake I could get my hands on, I did enjoy little indulgences. My husband surprised me with a little cake that we both shared and on a different night, we both enjoyed dessert. (I’d never actually had a proper chocolate sundae.)

The whole weekend was a lot of fun and I don’t regret a bit of it. (Ask me again next Monday. Haha.) I stayed away from a lot of the bad things out of habit and didn’t go crazy on other bad things.

Still, as I get back into the diet (back to phase one for a while!), I am reminded how much easier it is to just eat all the stuff I’m not supposed to eat. Funny how it took only a weekend to forget the difficulties in cutting bread out of your diet.

Bread is everywhere! Burgers, sandwiches of all kinds, dinner rolls… I don’t consider all bread evil by any means, but try getting something other than white bread and rolls when you go out…

I don’t mind it too much because I know it’s all worth it in the end, but it is a bit annoying. I think I was sticking closely to the diet so long that the break made me want to rush back in all my bad habits. It makes me wonder if I should have taken a break at all…

What do you think? Do you ever take breaks? Have you ever had a break backfire?

Okay, so these are a little late. But better late than never, right? It’s time for me to refocus for the month and talk about my goals…

Food – Honestly? I think I’m doing pretty good with this. I haven’t eaten bread in over a month now, no pasta either (I’ve found a noodle substitute – made out of beans!), and I have only had sweets a couple times. I like phase one of the South Beach Diet and I’m only making a few adjustments so I’m technically in Phase Two.

Even so, I feel much better than I was feeling. I miss my sushi, but I can still eat sashimi, which makes me very happy.

Water – I seem to have *SUCH* a hard time with keeping up on my water. I’m not sure what it is. I was doing fine with it for a while, but after that it’s been a constant trouble. I need to really get on this and get back into it.

Exercise – I’m going to try something a little new starting next week because I want to change up my routine a bit. I’m hoping that it will help me get re-excited about exercising again as well as switching things up to encourage more weight loss.

Mentality – I’m getting much better with this, but I do need to stop beating myself up so much. It’s a bad habit I’m slowly getting rid of, but I really need to ditch it for good.

What are your goals for May? Are you having trouble with anything? Is there anything you’re feeling proud of? Leave a comment in the comments section and start up a weight loss conversation.

Today marks the first official day that I can have (granary) bread again. And (wholemeal) pasta. And sweet potatoes, fruit, light yogurt, skim milk, red wine…

…but I don’t want to. Except for possibly the light yogurt, I find myself reluctant to come off phase one of the SBD. I don’t really want to start integrating those sorts of things back into my diet. Not yet, at least.

This feeling is actually quite a common phenomenon for people on the SBD and Dr. Agatson acknowledges that. Thankfully, he says it’s not a big deal if you want to stay on phase one longer than the minimum two weeks. The only danger is that you might get bored with the strict phase and lean back toward your previous eating habits.

I’m honestly not worried about that. Getting so addicted to the carbs and sweets last time has pretty much scared me enough to keep me on track. For a long while, at least.

I’m glad to have a bit more freedom back when it comes to eating for when I eat out, but honestly? They have some fantastic salads in my local venues as well as a lot of accommodating places that will adjust the menu. All of which makes it easier to stay on phase one.

I am happy to get some of the dairy products back. I haven’t been drinking coffee because I only like it with milk in it, and I like yogurt a lot, so those will be two things I will enjoy having the option of once again.

All in all, I’m very glad I got through phase one without ‘tripping up’. I feel better than I was, I’m not getting so tired all the time, my digestive system is doing a lot better, and I’m no longer having skin reactions to my food.

Well, after a sort of slap in the face reminder about how serious insulin resistance is, I have decided to give the South Beach diet a go.

I went on the South Beach diet a few years ago and got pretty good results while I was on it. I didn’t have any sort of support system though, so I ended up stopping and wondering what the point of it all was anyway.

South Beach is the diet recommended for everyone, but especially for people with blood sugar problems, be them diabetes or insulin resistant (prediabetes) related. The creator of the diet is also very up front and honest, which I like. He’s also very focused on the eating six times a day thing, which gives South Beach a lot more brownie points in the ‘making sense’ department in my opinion.

I have realized lately that something has to give. I’m not losing weight like I should be. And while that’s not to be unexpected of me with insulin resistance and possible PCOS, it doesn’t mean that it’s impossible for me to lose weight. I just need to find the right way for my body to do it.

I’m going with South Beach because I have an addiction to bread. Bread, pasta, rice, more bread, and then even more bread. I have also been having problems with chocolate cravings, and I recognize that I am getting myself well and truly addicted to the stuff.

So wish me luck. I will definitely be reporting how it goes here. I’ll be starting next Thursday. (Why? So I can have a few days to clean up my eating before hitting the strict phase.)

Best of fitness to all of you.

AKA: Children in China are Starving

I think it’s Africa these days, but I’m old enough to at least been on the end of the starving children in China statement.

Sometimes weight is just weight. Someone gets a desk job and puts a few pounds on. But for the people who are overweight or obese and have been for years, if not most of their life, there is usually a lot more to it than just weight.

That’s why in this blog, I want to address some of the other things besides your desk job which can lead to being overweight. I have a lot of personal causes, but I want to move beyond the scope of my personal weight loss and issues to issues many people might have.

Getting back to the above, I’m willing to be you heard something like the above when you were young. Either that or you were mature enough and in a family situation where you knew you should eat as much as you can right now because you don’t know when the next meal is coming.

There is yet another alternative in this group, and that is you heard a lot of:

Finish your dinner or no dessert!

You have to finish your plate before you can go out and play.

Or,

You finished your entire plate! What a good boy/girl!

Now picture me sighing and shaking my head.

I didn’t realize this was such a big issue until I came here to Australia. My husband and I would eat either out or in, it didn’t matter and I’d reach a point in the meal when it would just be uncomfortable to finish the rest of the meal. Eventually my husband kept telling me again and again that it was okay to not finish the meal.

It may seem the simplest thing in the world to simply stop eating when you’re full, but it’s not. At home, I would feel guilty if my husband cooked and I didn’t finish. I felt not only like I was letting good food go to waste but that I was somehow insulting him and his hard work by not finishing. When we were out, I wasn’t worried about insulting anyone, but I still felt guilt when I pushed a plate or bowl with food still in it away and said, “I’m finished.”

This is a case of easier said than done if you have hang-ups about food. It took me months to be able to be reasonably comfortable saying I’m finished when I truly was finished. It’s truly a habit you have to teach yourself. Learning it, however, is one of the factors that kept me around the 260 mark (my highest weight) instead of going any higher.

If you have troubles with this (when you’re at home, at least), take your leftovers and go through the act of making them leftovers. Even if you’d never really eat the leftover amount later, you’re still putting it away in the fridge and not into the wastebasket.

You won’t get the guilt from wasting it or insulting anyone, and you’re still teaching yourself to say your finished when you are really finished, not when your mind/society/your parents say you’re finished eating.

Remember: You should not be deriving a sense of accomplishment from finishing your plate.