Back to not tracking food

Check it out! I spent the last week not tracking my food. The last time I did not track my food was from mid-April to mid-May. I was stressed that I would start to re-gain.

This time, I've got more experience into maintenance and feel more comfortable. I'm not using the not tracking to eat off the rails or to eat junk and not count it. Just eating from my food template and routine, Paleo/Paleo-ish  type of diet. I've recently dropped most dairy, so it's more Paleo than primal.

I still cannot eat intuitively.  That so does not work for me. Intuitively, I'd like to fall face first into a jar of jelly beans or wood fired pizza. STILL. But, I don't. EVER. And that's okay. The benefits of a stable, normal weight are so worth it. My regular foods taste fabulous. The sugar/wheat dulled those tastes.

And yes, I've posted my weight. Goal is 115.4. I'm super short 5'1'' so no complaints about the low number. This is mid BMI for me, totally normal.

Life is good! :)

3 Month opt out period- weight maintenance tool

I'm picking a rule, with a sub-rule from Refuse to Regain (by Barbara Berkeley, MD) to write about. My opinions are my own, your experience may vary.  I would highly recommend the book.

Rule 2
3 Month Opt Out Period

During the first 90 days in weight maintenance, I followed the 12 rules in the Refuse to Regain book, I ate primarily Primarian (also Paleo), and I was actively involved in setting the new normal for weight maintenance. 90 days is a long time, weight maintenance is even longer, so I continue to opt out, even to this day.

Here's what worked for me.

1. Reading Refuse to Regain 3 months BEFORE I transitioned, to mull over the guidelines
2. Eating primarian/Paleo from the start. I went from loss right onto maintenance. No food rewards or treats or food I just HAD to have. No trigger foods that lead to gains.
3. Trying new recipes, reading new blogs, and buying only Primarian/Paelo. Recognizing exposure (not intentional) to trigger foods and stopping right away. I also attended an Everyday Paleo workshop by Sarah Fragoso at the very start of my opt out.
4. Weighing daily 3 months BEFORE I transitioned.
5. The wisdom, the courage, and the work to do steps 1-4. Rinse and repeat!

Here's what did not work in the past

1. Reading but not taking action for weight maintenance.
2. Eating the foods that contributed to my weight gain, once I was at goal. There is a great post at the Refuse to Regain blog in the archives. Here's the link How to Eat after weight loss
3. Eating the foods that I used to loose, but using slippery slope thinking "I'm at goal, so I deserve (extra portion, dessert, a cookie!?) because I have more points left in my day...."
4. Weighing only weekly and skipping weeks at Weight Watchers when I had gained.
5. Because I was living under the influence of trigger foods, I did not have the peace and clarity of mind to work and try steps that would maintain the loss.  It's that wisdom part that is muted for me when I expose myself to triggers. 

Before and After, 40 weeks

May 3, 2011(before ) to February 3, 2012  (goal weight) 72 pound loss

What!!!!???  I'm missing my head. And, 72 pounds. I feel and look at lot different!

And, happy to be maintaining 1-2 pounds below my goal weight at almost 6 months into my Jr. Maintenance year.

It's all good!

Practice- weight maintenance tool

I'm picking a rule, with a sub-rule from Refuse to Regain (by Barbara Berkeley, MD) to write about. My opinions are my own, your experience may vary.  I would highly recommend the book.

Rule 1, step 5- Practice

Practice is a part of becoming a weight maintenance expert. In the book, Dr. Berkeley encourages us to face our eating challenges (parties, conferences, events).

When I first switched from Medifast to primal/Paleo I took a trip to the east coast. Fortunately, there was lots of seafood and healthy choices at all meals, so it was a good time for me to practice.  Plane trips,  car trips, long errands, parties, pot lucks, conferences, etc are all do-able now. Practicing the first year, and staying primal/paleo is a great way to get the whole meal template down pat. A lot of work and some planning, always worth it.

What is working for me

1. Events  or meetings at restaurants- surf the web and check the menu for gluten free items. Seafood or grilled chicken are always good choices with a salad or steamed veggies.
2. Parties- ask the hosts what is being served and bring something to share.
3. Parties- where there are no good choices, eat before I go and drink coffee and chat
4. Conferences- I can usually navigate most choices, but I always have a back up protein bar if not for the main meal. Coffee to end the meal is always nice.
5. Travel- I practice asking about gluten/sugar, etc and how things are made or I bring a small cooler. I stop at local groceries and markets when I find them. Stopping for Starbucks as needed, for coffee or unsweetened ice tea only. If there is a local specialty that fits my food template, then I will have it. If not, I'm sure it was fabulous, but not for me.

What did not work in the past

1. Eating from the low fat or low calorie menu and finding out later those foods were full of sodium and much more calories than stated.
2. Parties- cooking up something special and calorie laden for a "special treat" for all.
3. Parties- eating a little bit of everything because it was there and it fit on my plate. ( I learned that from Weight Watchers- unfortunately, for me = total FAIL. :0 )
4. Conferences- eating whatever was there and the dessert, too! free food!
5. Travel- eating at fast food (it is easy and we are in the middle of the desert), eating some biscotti with my coffee ( I'm on vacation, I will treat myself to biscotti!) Trying all the sweet local specialties. (fudge? pralines? salt water taffy? frozen custard?) Buy some to bring back to work and eat it then, too! 

If you have any other examples of practicing eating your food plan/template, feel free to comment. 

Global Fat Scale Calculator link- from the BBC

I was totally captivated by the global fat scale calculator link from the BBC.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-18770328

I know that this is not accurate for muscular body types . But interesting to see from a graph/data perspective.

My BMI puts me 91% lower than women in my age group in the US, and 72% lower than women in my age group world wide.

Very interesting. I'm captivated by graphs and data.  And very proud that I found a way to eat to maintain my weight in the BMI of my choosing. I've maintained at a higher BMI, but still in my normal range, but being in the middle of my BMI range feels better.

Avoiding "S" foods - weight maintenance tool

Apple Pear, sliced and dusted with cinnamon

I'm picking a rule, with a sub-rule from Refuse to Regain (by Barbara Berkeley, MD) to write about. My opinions are my own, your experience may vary.  I would highly recommend the book.

Rule 1, Step four:

Accept the drug-like nature of S foods and avoid them.

Avoiding sugary & starchy foods is hands down the BEST strategy I've found in my weight maintenance practice. Think: bread, pasta, cereal, potatoes, flour and sweet baked goods. I choose not to eat them and that = freedom.  I know for some people, restriction sets them up for overeating. But for me, restricting S foods is a release from the up-and-down weight gain in the past.


If you can totally relate :I just want you to know, you are not alone.
If you don't know if you can relate: keep an open mind, think about trying it.
If you cannot relate: Skip the rest of this post. Celebrate that you can eat "S"foods and stay at goal weight.

 What works for me:

1. Avoiding sugar, flour, cereal, potatoes, and most processed foods all together
2. Eating fruit and occasionally dried fruit like golden raisins or dates if I want a sweet food.
3. Keeping a Lara bar around for a safe food, for occasional use only.
4. Using a Medifast brownie, gluten free maintenance bar for birthday celebrations, or just a good cup of regular or decaf coffee.
5. Using 85-90 % chocolate squares (1-2) , for occasional use only.
6. Not making an exception or an excuse to grab an S food. EVER.

What has not worked in the past

1. Eating "S" foods and telling myself, it's within my calorie/point range
2. Buying "S" foods and thinking I could bag them into little portions.
3. Going back to eating the "S" foods that contributed to my weight gain in the first place.
4. Eating an "S" food because I had hiked or exercised a lot. "I've earned this!"
5. Eating an "S" food because I was stressed, had a bad day, or did well and I wanted to "treat myself".
6. Buying "S" foods "because the buy one, get one free M&M's could be placed on half a cup of light ice cream and wouldn't that be a great treat?" and other  slippery slope thinking.

How I transitioned/transformed: The  scoop.
I was reading Refuse to Regain about 4 months away from my goal weight. At the time I thought I was 2 months away from goal, but goal took me a little longer. Once I accepted the thought that I might not be successful if I re-introduced S foods in my diet, I needed to think back at the past, the present, and the future. And, I needed to plan ahead by thinking about what I could eat in transition and maintenance. I also wanted to know what worked for me and what caused regain.

In the past- (at the time I was at Weight Watchers goal twice) Think : pizza crust, biscotti dipped in coffee, or a Skinny Cow Ice cream. Yes, they all tasted great and in my points range, but lead me to want to keep eating. No Bueno

In the current (at the time I was on Take Shape for Life/Medifast): Gee, all the gluten free meals are the ones that taste the best to me. And, I can eat the Cauliflower Pizza from Sandy's Kitchen, but that pizza did not make me want to overeat. What was different. Sauce- check, mozzarella- check,  pizza crust.... OH, there is no flour/wheat in the cauliflower pizza crust. Eureka! That's it. Right there.... This is bueno! A root cause exposed. Fabulous, but now what?

In the future: How am I going to work this? Does this mean no birthday cake or brownies? What will I do if I want to have something sweet? While transitioning from Medifast onto regular food, I stopped at the point where wheat was brought in and started seeing what sweet, natural foods I could tolerate. I also did a 90 Opt out (see the Refuse to Regain book on this) where I ate a Primarian diet and tinkered with a small amount of sweet food to see what would work (see steps 1-6 above).

I continue to fine tune my diet and what does or doesn't work for occasional sweet. I eat 2 fruits a day in my diet (think blueberries and a peach), but sometimes, I'll choose one of the fruits to be an extra sweet fruit.  I have to say that  golden raisins or fresh pineapple are my most favorite occasional snack. Once a week or so.  Sweet, but no urges to want to overeat. And, I don't miss the "S" foods the longer I go without.  That is Bueno!

That's it. Thanks for reading.  Hopping off the soap box now... get the Refuse to Regain book and work those steps. So worth it!

Anybody else avoiding "S" foods and having success?

5 month weigh maintenance check-in

5 Month weight maintenance check in.


Total Loss: 72.4 pounds


Months in Maintenance: 5 months


Weight around goal:  +/- 2 pounds at or below goal weight


Mini goals- twice a week strength training.  Yes!

•  3 weeks in a row
• Combination gym with free weights, some machines and exercises at home from the book- Everyday Paleo, by Sarah Fragoso

What's working:

1. Picking out a gym or strength training day and sticking to it!
2. Packing my work out clothes the night before
3. Using favorite music as a reward
4. Weighing everyday
5. Sticking to my food template of primal/paelo
6. Continuing to try a few new recipes
   
7. Batch cooking on the weekend
8. Walking 45-60  mins most days
9. Shopping for groceries to meet the food template while on vacation.
   
10. Reading weight maintenance blogs to keep my head in the game. 

That's the scoop. I'm still running into people who have not seen me in a while. Mostly, people have gotten used to the new way that I look.  I did not recognize myself in the mirror. Its cool and strange at the same time.

Got the green light from the doctor today. Loving this summer at the new, lower weight. Very worth it!