Showing posts with label calorie management. Show all posts
Showing posts with label calorie management. Show all posts

Sunday, August 10, 2014

August 10th, 2014 Weekend Calorie Management Issues

August 10th, 2014 Weekend Calorie Management Issues

I've really enjoyed the extra sleep lately on the weekends. I slept a full quality eight hours last night and I've felt amazing all day as a result. When I'm feeling well rested, my workouts soar to new levels like it did today on the elliptical at the YMCA. I killed it today (I'm fairly certain that's a good thing).

One of the big challenges for me on the weekends is managing my calories properly. I sometimes don't eat my weekend brunch until sometime after noon. On days like this, I bump up the calories during brunch because an "official" lunch isn't happening. This strategy often leaves me short, regardless.

Dinner was at a restaurant with family in my hometown. My oldest daughter Amber, my grandson Noah and I made the trip. We dined with mom, aunt Kelli and uncle Tim. When I'm in a restaurant, I'm very cautious and on guard--so it's very difficult to allow myself to "bump" anything up. I have strict personal guidelines when I dine out. It was a Mexican restaurant (of course it was--when I dine out, it seems like it's Mexican 85% of the time). My personal rules are fairly simple:

If I decide to have chips (sometimes I don't depending on my calorie budget), I count out my chips on a napkin, separating them from the bowl--and I stick to it-- These are my chips. I can eat them as fast or slow as I desire, but I cannot reach for another once they're gone. I counted out twelve today. I stick with entrees I feel confident about--like fajitas, and I order them "special."

This is me ordering: "I'll take the smallest portion of chicken fajitas you have. Is there a lunch portion? Okay--let's do that. And please ask the kitchen staff how many ounces of chicken comes in an order. No cheese, no pico (I just don't like it), no flour tortillas. I want corn tortillas instead (and sometimes I ask for corn taco shells). No beans, no rice, and the sour cream and guac in separate containers, please. And an extra plate for assembly."

I'm not difficult at all! Sometimes I skip the guac too. On rare occasion, I might ask for the cheese on a separate plate, just to use a 1/2 serving. It would be incredibly easy to eat a thousand calories or more in a place like this--and I have, many times. But I don't do that anymore. I get in and out feeling confident about the meal, my calorie budget and the experience--and I never leave feeling deprived, hungry or left out of anything. It's all good! I also enjoy smiling great big when the server enthusiastically asks, "Did you save room for a sopapilla ice cream sandwich or fried ice cream?" I smile and say no and then I think, if this server only knew. How fun!

I checked my budget after dinner and it was still shy of a thousand fifty. I recently acquired some super nutrition Shakeology packets and I have bananas, all natural peanut butter and unsweetened all natural almond milk--Easy!! I'll just make a big Shakeology when I get home! It'll be my dessert, if you will!

I used a packet of vanilla Shakeology, two cups of the almond milk, a small banana, 16 grams of all-natural peanut butter and a dash of Pyure Brand Organic Stevia. I blended it real well and enjoyed the most amazing 367 calories of solid nutrition. Oh--and by the way--what does 16 grams of sugar free all natural peanut butter look like?
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See where I scraped the paper towel? That took off 4 grams, arriving at exactly 16g. I scrape it off the paper towel and into or onto whatever I'm having.

The peanut butter calories are dense!! Good thing I'm measuring with a digital food scale. If not, I would be drastically underestimating calories in things like this. It's funny, when I'm handling peanut butter, it's as if I'm handling plutonium or something else considered very dangerous! I need a haz-mat suit!

I was still short even after 367 calories of dense nutrition. So I decided a pita pizza was in order. After that 205 calories in my #lastfoodofday, I finally registered above 1700 for the day, but still 150 calories shy of 1200 net calories after exercise calories burned. I'm okay with this today. 

And honestly, the answer isn't "calorie bumping" late--the answer is better planning and calorie management throughout the day. Eating late isn't something I should be doing because my body doesn't burn as much overnight. It's busy trying to repair via rest, not digest a recently consumed meal. Obviously I have some adjustments to make. But you know what? I'm very happy to be where I am. I don't binge and I don't have the urges to binge. That's HUGE.

My next weigh day is Wednesday and we'll see how this adjusted approach is working according to the scale. Regardless of the number I see on Wednesday, I'm feeling fantastic these days and I can tell I'm getting smaller and smaller. I feel it in my clothes and see it in the mirror!

Food Tweets today:














I've made it a priority to reply to each comment left on this blog. So many times in the past I haven't because I thought you might not come back to read the reply. I've enjoyed this new "feature," so to speak--because some interesting dialogue often comes from these interactions. It's like a blog post "after-party" where we hang around and discuss the issues and dynamics explored in the post and how they relate to you and your experience. If you have any questions or comments, simply leave them in the comment form below and as I can throughout each day, I'll reply. Might be several hours later, but I will reply!

Thank you for reading. I sincerely appreciate your amazing support,
Strength,
Sean
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Sunday, August 3, 2014

August 3rd, 2014 My Peace Instead of A Piece

August 3rd, 2014 My Peace Instead of A Piece

I slept so well last night. I slept like a baby for over nine hours straight. I woke up today and felt incredible. I must get more of that kind of rest.  Getting up so late--and not eating my first food of the day until after 1pm, really set my calorie management up for a shortfall later. More on that in a moment.

We had a cookout tonight in celebration of my daughter Amber's first day in her brand new career as a special education teacher for Ponca City Public Schools. The kids don't report until the 12th, new teachers start tomorrow morning!
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Here's my daughter Courtney, grandson Noah, daughter Amber and Me at the party tonight! Noah was getting pretty tired at this point.

My brunch was so big and filling (see Tweet below), I wasn't the slightest bit hungry until it was time to eat at the cookout. It didn't even occur to me to eat something, say--4 or 5pm, even something small. I was too busy preparing for the cookout to think about eating. After calculating my cookout plate of food, I realized I had an issue. I was still over 600 calories short of my minimum target daily goal of 1700 calories. And that's not even thinking about net calories after exercise! I decided I would get at least two miles in at the trail and then I would eat something to bump up the calories, late. Not the best strategy, for sure--considering the time--but as you'll read in the Tweets below-at least my net calories after exercise was over 1200 for a change! I was still 194 calories shy of my target 1700.

I'm not going to stress or beat myself up for the poor calorie management today. Tomorrow is a big, beautiful new day--and I will manage better. Interesting how "calorie management" means getting enough--when it used to mean trying to not get too much! It's very clear my brain isn't centered around constantly obsessing over food. I eat well at appropriate times. This sugar free discipline has given me a peace and calm I never thought I could experience. There was cake at the party tonight and I wasn't the least bit interested. It wasn't a case of "I can't have any," it was a thank you, but (polite, yet matter-of-fact type tone) "I don't eat cake." It didn't take will power because I didn't want cake. Will power is only summoned when we resist something we truly want. This was a different kind of power--not even a "power," really. For me, I had my peace instead of a piece.

Speaking of cakes...

My Aunt Kelli found some more "Lost Before Pictures:"

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Apparently there was a time when I couldn't be too far away from a box of those little snack cakes. I have no idea what I'm doing holding a box of Little Debbie Snack Cakes while posing for a picture in a restaurant. (pictured: Amber, my late Grandmother, My brother Shane, Mom and Me.)

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I have no idea what I'm holding in my hand. It's food of some sort. There's an 80% chance it's a Little Debbie snack cake. ;) (pictured: My mom, Irene, Me)

It was a tough little two miles at the trail tonight. The humidity made it feel like a much harder workout. Two miles felt like much more. My clothes were drenched in workout juice.

My food Tweets and a few others today:










Tomorrow is set to be a monumental day. I'll be doing a spin class followed by a swim in the pool. If this sounds like a normal routine, you're obviously new to this blog. If you are new--welcome!! Dive into the recent archives and you'll understand why me diving into that pool tomorrow will be epic.

Thank you for reading and for your continued incredible support,
Strength,
Sean
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Friday, August 1, 2014

August 1st, 2014 It's The Living

August 1st, 2014 It's The Living

Two different co-workers stopped me today, independent of one another, in order to comment on my changing appearance. The people that see us everyday are typically the last to notice because it's a gradual change--until they do a double take and realize, oh wow--some changes are happening here! They see the care I take in preparing my lunches and they see the food I keep in the employee kitchen. I often share some of what I'm preparing too, especially extra fruit. When I started making my food tweets a non-negotiable accountability tool, I also started getting some mild teasing from colleagues about snapping pictures of anything and everything I eat. My obvious success has pretty much shut those down.  Also, where I am emotionally, mentally and physically--is helping me be a better studio-mate. I'm taking more pride in a job well done. I'm going the extra mile. I'm being proactive on certain projects. Why? Because I feel so much better about ME.

I'm excited about the swim on Monday evening. I've received several messages from some wonderful people about their nearly identical struggle in this department. A couple have even gone as far as committing to doing it with me. Not here of course--but in their part of the world. That's exciting to me. Monday evening when I'm overcoming and accomplishing this personal swim challenge, so will others. I absolutely cannot wait to share the details with you here on Monday night. If you're doing it too--I hope you'll also share your experience here! I plan on shooting a short video and taking pictures too. This is a big deal to me. Am I a little nervous? Yes. I have a feeling my nervousness will be relieved upon entering the pool and will amp up again when it's time to climb out of the pool and head back to the locker room.

I plan on sleeping as long as I like in the morning, so I've taken advantage of some extra time tonight to catch up some on emails and blog reading. I've also made some changes to the left hand side bar of my blog and I've changed a few other things in the name of general blog maintenance.

I haven't accepted advertising on my blog for the longest time. I did try Google Ads once, a very long time ago--but immediately shut it off when I found advertisements making ridiculous weight loss claims. Uh, no. It was early in 2009--Day 165, five years ago, when I wrote the post "My Integrity Isn't For Sale." 

I've recently decided to accept specific advertisers--but only for things I use and believe in, naturally. I don't expect a rush of advertising--and that's not the goal, but soon you will see a logo on the left hand side of my blog for Pyure Brands Stevia. I've reached an agreement with Pyure Brands that is very simple. When I use their product in preparing something, I'll mention their brand. And the Pyure logo will adorn this blog. I'll likely contribute recipes to their growing list. That's how this started. I Tweeted my cinnamon and stevia baked pears and Pyure brands immediately requested permission to use the recipe, sending me product in exchange. That works for me!

My oldest daughter Amber and I attended a Readers Theater performance tonight of the Pulitzer Prize winning play "Fences." It was so incredibly powerful. Amber and I share an appreciation for acting and moving stories and this one was tops in both regards.

After the play, we picked up her boyfriend KL and headed for dinner out at one of our favorite Mexican restaurants. I stuck with the tried and true, employing my strategies for successful restaurant calorie budget navigation! It was a great evening. Feels good, you know? To be so alive, aware and present each day. This whole process is about much more than a shrinking waist line and smaller number on the scale. That stuff is happening too, of course--but it's the living--the different perspective, changing attitude--the being more present and aware, the feeling of peace and clarity, these are the most powerful things along this road.

I'm extremely excited about where we're headed. At the same time, I've exercised the ability to bring it down to a nice calm focus on today and today only. Grant me the strength to make it through another day and I will. And those days add up quickly. I'm overjoyed.

I chose to make today my no workout day. I will be hitting the Y tomorrow and Sunday late morning/early afternoon for my next workouts. And of course, the swim on Monday!

My meal tweets:














Thank you for reading and for your wonderful support,
Strength,
Sean
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Thursday, July 10, 2014

July 10th, 2014 Go At Your Own Pace

July 10th, 2014 Go At Your Own Pace

I made it through the day without snacking in between meals. Not that, good/well planned snacks are a bad thing, they're not. I've bulked up my meals the past few days since I fell short the other day by more than 300 calories. I'm not a nutrition expert, not even close, but I've listened to enough of them to know I must feed my metabolism! Some say I should eat more than 1700 calories a day and I don't necessarily dispute their assessment, but I'll know when and if I'm ready to bump it up a little. For me, it'll come when I feel like I've raised the bar in the exercise department.

I mentioned yesterday about adding spinning classes to my exercise plan. I did many of these before, but not before hitting somewhere in the 280's, if I remember right. I recently had a conversation with one of the spin instructors at my local YMCA and he asked, "When will I see you back in my class?" I smiled and said "I've got some more weight to lose before I climb onto that seat again." To which he replied, "You can just do what you can in there at your own pace." And this was a light bulb moment for me. He's right. The seat might hurt for a few classes, sure, but my backside will strengthen up quickly and it'll not be an issue, just like it wasn't before. And why do I feel the need to stay on pace with the rest of the regulars in there?? This isn't a competition, after all. Besides, they're regulars! I was also a regular at one point, and what advice did I give to a friend trying it for the first time? "Hey, don't worry--just go at your own pace." It's high time I take the instructor's and my own advice and apply it to me. I'm really looking forward to the incredible workout I know it will provide.

I caught my reflection in a window today and it almost made me emotional in a good way. My reflection was noticeably smaller. Avoiding mirrors, reflections and pictures was a big part of the mental/emotional dynamics of the regain. As if not seeing it made it less than it was. If a family member took a picture of me at my heaviest regain point, I would go out of my way to ignore it--of course, not before reminding them to NOT post them on social media. Why? Embarrassment over the regain, of course! But I'm over that now and it feels incredibly liberating. I still request privacy and control over what pictures others share of me, but it's for different reasons. Since the epiphanies of May 15th, I'm no longer ashamed for being me. And that's bigger than any regain. I've discovered the ability to feel good about myself regardless of the reflection in the window. Still, it felt good to see a smaller me staring back today. Mainly, because it's confirmation that what I'm doing is working well. In the darkness of relapse and regain, the hopeless emotions become very deceiving, convincing us that perhaps returning to a healthy weight isn't possible; isn't an option. But it is possible and it isn't hopeless. It can certainly feel that way, but I'm living proof it isn't.

My food was really good today. Breakfast and lunch was fairly routine and I had planned to cook a nice dinner at home before a friend called asking if I could be a designated driver tonight. I drove and while he did what he was doing, I made my way to the Y for my workout, then I dined on his dime at a very nice restaurant. I'm super picky while eating out these days and for good reason. I found a nice sirloin, some asparagus and sweet potato fries. The server offered to bring bread and I replied: "Please don't, but thank you!" I also ordered the steak to be cooked without any added fat (usually butter), just a dry grill with dry seasonings. It was wonderful. The asparagus was obviously cooked with olive oil and much more than the small spray of olive oil I usually use at home. Instead of 25-35 calories worth of asparagus, it checked in at 112 calories. I will admit, it was the best asparagus I've tasted in a very long time. The sweet potato fries were fried instead of baked like I do at home, so I paired down the serving size until I was confident the 160 cal count I assigned was fairly close. It was a great meal and I feel good about my choices. "Would you like dessert tonight?" she offered. I didn't speak, I just smiled politely and lightly shook my head to indicate a pass. I'm finding incredible strength and pleasure in this new found resolve and control. It's a special kind of place where the feeling of accomplishment is desired more than the temporary high of whatever is on the dessert tray.

Today's meal tweets and a couple extra solely for the sake of amusement:








Thank you for reading,
Strength,
Sean
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Monday, July 7, 2014

July 7th, 2014 Glad I Made That Decision

July 7th, 2014 Glad I Made That Decision

I had a wonderful morning with mom on my show today. She was delightful. I enjoyed preparing her a nice breakfast, identical to mine--and just sharing the meal and coffee together with casual conversation, cherished moments, you know? One of the coolest stories came at the very end of the show. I mentioned Garth Brooks has scheduled a press conference for Thursday at 11am central on his website GarthBrooks.com. So we started talking about Garth's early days around my hometown. Garth attended college in Stillwater and at one point during his college days, he played his guitar anywhere anyone would listen. One particular occasion was the annual Noon Lions Club fireworks display on July 4th at what was known as Lewis Stadium (Now Boone Pickens Stadium). Garth was the entertainment for the crowd of a few thousand. It was just him and his guitar. He played while everyone waited for it to be dark enough for the fireworks to begin. His performance was basically background music, a mild warm up to the spectacular fireworks everyone was anticipating. While he played, mom turned to me and my Aunt Kelli and said, "That kid is going to make it someday." Wow, was she right or what?? If you go to a Garth Brooks concert today, you'll still see plenty of fireworks because it's a part of his show, but it's not the main attraction anymore.

We stopped to see Noah for a few minutes before we hit the road back to Stillwater. That little guy lights up our world. It was a nice drive back, an opportunity for more conversation and reflection of a wonderful, albeit short visit.

I hurried back home in order to get into the Y for a good elliptical workout, then home to prepare dinner. Sometimes I'm a little too efficient with my calorie counting. My late dinner was a lot of food for a low 414 calories. I knew how late it was and I was certain it would be my #lastfoodofday, yet upon entering the specifics into MyFitnessPal, I realized I had fallen 339 calories short for the day. I wasn't hungry throughout the day. We (Mom and me) enjoyed a big 268 calorie afternoon snack and still, I fell short. Okay--nice "problem" to have, I suppose. This is correctable with some closer attention to calorie management earlier in the day. I realize it is something I can't allow to become habit because the body needs fuel. As I start various additions to my exercise routine (spinning classes-resistance strength training), I plan on adding some calories to the budget. Not being afraid to make bigger calorie management decisions earlier in the day will become very important.

I'll tell you, I honestly didn't feel like working out tonight. I was tired, irritable and feeling kind of off. If I hadn't taken an "off" day yesterday it would have been an easy decision to make today the "off" day. Instead, I sat in my car looking at the YMCA building and coming up with various justifications as to how not working out for the second day in a row would be okay. Finally, I called myself out and made my way in and onto the elliptical. As soon as the music started playing, I was in a better place. I finished the workout and felt even better having overcome the initial mental resistance. I'm glad I made that decision.

I also made a decision to go to bed before finishing this post. I was just too tired to finish before bed. This is definitely not a habit I will allow very often. But occasionally it is the correct option and sleep wins.

Thank you for reading,
Strength,
Sean
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